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'Lunchbox' actress Nimrat Kaur says she owes her career to theatre
The versatile Bollywood actress opens up on the initial days of her career and how life in Mumbai moulded her
- PUBLISHED: Thu 8 May 2025, 11:52 AM
- By:
- ANI
Bollywood actress Nimrat Kaur, known for her roles in films like Lunchbox and the web series Kull, recently opened up about her career, stating that she owes it to theatre.
Kaur, who arrived in Mumbai in 2004 with dreams of making it big, initially found herself drawn to modelling and ad films. "I thought I would make a lot of money from modelling and get some experience in front of the camera."
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She soon realised acting was much more than just reading lines.
"I started with music videos, then moved on to ads. But soon enough, I understood that acting is a completely different ball game," Kaur said. "Playing a character, feeling it, and embodying it--that's what I wanted to learn."
Her exposure to theatre came when she began attending plays around Mumbai.
Kaur's first big break in theatre came with Thespo, a youth theatre forum, where she won the best actress award. She went on to perform in numerous plays at renowned venues like Prithvi Theatre, NCPA Experimental, and more.
Kaur's theatre journey took her to cities across India, including Kolkata, Pune, Delhi and Bengaluru.
"Whatever I have learned today, I owe it all to theatre," she said, emphasising how those early experiences shaped her as an artist.
One of the pivotal moments in Kaur's career came with her breakthrough role in The Lunchbox (2013), where she played the leading lady opposite Irrfan Khan.
Reflecting on how she landed the role, she credited the late casting director Seher Latif.
"I was doing plays when Seher Latif showed some of my performances to Ritesh Batra, the director of The Lunchbox," she recalled. "I didn't even have to audition for it."
"The way The Lunchbox came to me felt like destiny. It was such a big gift. I feel like God had a hand in this," she added, still in awe of the life-changing opportunity that came her way.
Currently, Kaur is earning praise for her role as Rani Indrani Rai Singh in the period drama series Kull, out on Jio Hotstar.
The series explores the dynamics of a royal family, and Kaur's character is filled with emotional depth and complexity.
When asked about the best compliment she has ever received, Kaur shared, "My mother called me after watching the show. She was completely stunned by my performance and said, 'I couldn't believe this could happen.' Her words meant the world to me."
She further mentioned that the positive feedback from audiences has been overwhelming, especially in the series' intense climax.
"People have been coming up to me, almost shocked by the depth of the character. That's the kind of response you hope for as an actor," she said.