- Rajesh Kumar left acting at 42 to pursue farming, facing major financial losses
- He sold his car and struggled with debt, receiving abusive calls from recovery agents
- The five-year break transformed him personally and improved his acting skills
Actor Rajesh Kumar recalled one of the most difficult phases of his life, revealing that he lost almost everything after stepping away from acting at the peak of his career to take up farming.
The Sarabhai vs Sarabhai actor said he sold his car, struggled with debt and received abusive calls from recovery agents before making his acting comeback in 2022.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Rajesh Kumar said he had taken a break from acting at the age of 42 to pursue farming. The decision, however, resulted in major financial losses. "I lost everything," he said, adding that the five years away from the industry transformed him as a person and made him more grounded.
Recalling the difficult period, Rajesh said he had struggled to repay his dues and even faced abusive calls from credit card recovery agents. "The credit card recovery agent would call the watchman's cabin downstairs and abuse me because I didn't have the money to pay," he said.
The actor revealed that he had sold his car and later handed over his last vehicle to farmers in Nashik because he was unable to pay them. Despite the hardships, Rajesh treated the experience as one of the biggest learning phases of his life.
"The biggest takeaway from the last four or five years has been the learning, it has been incredibly beautiful," he added. The actor said the experiences he went through changed the way he approached acting, as they helped him relate better to different characters and understand their actions.
"When a variety of roles started coming my way, I realised I could see so many different people within myself. I'd lived through so many situations, and it's our experiences that shape us. As we say, ‘It is in times of scarcity that one's true character is revealed.' Those experiences slowly became a part of who I am," Rajesh Kumar said.
Reflecting on how the experience changed him, he said becoming "more human" had also made him a better actor.
Rajesh Kumar is now gearing up for the release of Ohh My Dog, directed by Amit Rai. The film, which celebrates the special bond between humans and their dogs, also features Pankaj Tripathi, Pawan Malhotra and Geeta Agrawal Sharma. It is set to hit theatres on August 7.