How Rajkummar Rao became Ujjwal Nikam without meeting him

Playing a real, still-practising senior lawyer is a tightrope. For Prahaar: The Untold Story of Ujjwal Nikam, Rajkummar Rao had to find Ujjwal Nikam’s voice, mannerisms and courtroom command without the shortcut most actors lean on: time with the person. At the India Today Conclave Mumbai 2026, he explained that no meeting with Nikam happened before the shoot.

The archives became the coach

With Nikam busy across Delhi and Maharashtra, Rao turned to the record. He watched archival courtroom footage, including material from the 1993 case, and interviews. Nikam, he said, loves talking and has a knack for commanding the room. From those tapes, Rao picked up the lawyer’s voice, physical presence and smaller gestures that read as authority. Then came the body work: Rao gained weight to play Nikam at a particular stage of his life, a physical shift he said he had never attempted before.

• Voice and manner: Studied court footage from the 1993 case onward and interviews.
• Physicality: Gained weight to play Ujjwal Nikam at a specific age.
• Set immersion: Around 50 extras stayed in character and reacted even off camera.

The courtroom that made everyone go quiet

The 26/11 trial is not light material, and Rao said the emotional weight hit hardest in the courtroom recreation. A young actor playing a child witness delivered her monologue so convincingly that the set went silent. As if we were all reliving those experiences, he said. Director Avinash Arun built that atmosphere by keeping everyone present: around 50 extras stayed in the courtroom every day, reacting even when the camera was not on them. Lalit Prabhakar, who plays Ajmal Kasab, remained seated and in character between shots.

What to watch for

The film also features Jaideep Ahlawat, Wamiqa Gabbi, Sikandar Kher and Ashish Vidyarthi. For Hindi film fans, the hook is not just the 26/11 courtroom drama but how a controlled actor like Rao handles a man whose power comes from speech and stillness. The film releases in theatres on October 16.

Source: India Today