From An Aspiring Doctor To A "Household Name," How A Phone Call Changed Rasika Duggal's Life

"I remember I used to carry DVDs of my work to auditions because no one recognised me," wrote Rasika Duggal

Actress Rasika Duggal, who boasts of an impressive filmography, in her piece for Humans Of Bombay, opened up about her aspirations, her days of struggle and more. Rasika's breakout performance came in the form of Nandita Das' Manto. Rasika recalled the incident and wrote, "One day, my phone rang - it was Nandita Das. She wanted to cast me in Manto and that changed everything." Another milestone in Rasika Duggal's career was the web-series Mirzapur. An excerpt from her piece read, "And then, Mirzapur happened. I remember, I used to carry DVDs of my work to auditions because no one recognised me. That changed after Mirzapur. I became a household name."

Rasika's first assignment as an actor came in the form of Anurag Kashyap's No Smoking. An excerpt from her piece read, "When my course ended, I desired to be an actor. I'd give 5 auditions a day; I'd show up at every audition, mujhe kaam chahiye tha! I was advised against doing small roles, but I still did 14 films where I had small parts. I even acted in Anurag Kashyap's No Smoking. I'd proudly say, 'Mujhe Anurag Kashyap ke movie mei part mila hai'."

The journey for the actress was not that easy. She would give 5 auditions a day, featured in an independent film and was told by a few producers that she "wasn't sellable." Writing about her experience of filming Kshay, Rasika said, "I got a lead in an independent film called Kshay-on the best day of shoot we had only 4 people on set. At times, I'd hold the thermocol sheet and also shoot. Somehow the movie got made and premiered at the Chicago International Film Festival. Reviewers praised my performance; I was thrilled! But the best part was my mom arranging a special screening in Jamshedpur. She was so proud."

After Kshay,  Rasika got offered more roles. "I even worked with Irrfan Sir in Qissa. And then, I almost signed 5 more films but none worked out; producers said I wasn't 'sellable'. It was the lowest time in my career. Still, I never second guessed my decision of being an actor; Maa's support made me believe that good things were coming," she wrote.