Gajraj Rao

Rao's entry into film came in 1994, when he landed a small part in Shekhar Kapur's *Bandit Queen* — not a bad film to start with, even if the role didn't announce him to the world. For the next two-plus decades, he worked steadily across Hindi films and, eventually, web series, accumulating a filmography that's more impressive in retrospect than it probably felt in the moment. Supporting turns in films like *Talvar* (where he played Inspector Dhaniram) and *Blackmail* kept him working and visible to directors who pay attention to that kind of thing. Then came *Badhaai Ho* in 2018, directed by Amit Sharma, and everything shifted. Rao played Jeetendra Kaushik — a government employee in his fifties whose wife, played by Neena Gupta, becomes unexpectedly pregnant — and the film became a genuine sleeper hit. His performance didn't rely on big moments or showy technique. It's the small stuff: the way he can't quite meet his sons' eyes, the pride he can't fully suppress even while mortified. He won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Screen Award for Best Actor (Critics) for the role (Wikipedia), and the on-screen partnership with Gupta earned them the Zee Cine Award for Extraordinary Jodi of the Year as well. His post-*Badhaai Ho* choices don't follow an obvious pattern, which is probably the point. He reteamed with Gupta for *Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan* (2020), playing a father grappling with his son's homosexuality — same actor, very different emotional register. *Lootcase* (2020) cast him as a corrupt politician, a comedic pivot that showed he can't be easily typecast. *Maja Ma* (2022) put him opposite Madhuri Dixit. On streaming, he's appeared in *F.A.T.H.E.R.S.*, *Tech Conversations with Dad*, *Masaba Masaba*, and the anthology series *Ray* (Wikipedia). *Jolly LLB 3* is listed as an upcoming theatrical project for 2025.