Maalik teaser: Rajkummar Rao is no longer the sweet Bittu, but a gangster with a penchant for killing to rise in life

The sweet boy-next-door we saw in films like Bareilly Ki Barfi, Ludo, Stree, and more has now turned into a bloodthirsty gangster, who has no qualms about shedding blood to rise in life. That’s the best way to describe Rajkummar Rao’s character in his upcoming film Maalik. The makers unveiled the film’s teaser on Tuesday, which shows Rajkummar playing the role of a full-fledged gangster for the first time.

The teaser takes us to 1988’s Allahabad city and begins with Rajkummar Rao describing how there are two types of people — one who give their blood and sweat to build a life, and the others who shed blood and sweat to snatch the opportunity from others. Rajkummar proudly declares himself to be the latter. The gory visuals show Rajkummar waking up with a gun and walking amid a crowd with the gun on his shoulder. He is then seen ruthlessly killing a man as the crowd watches, and tying his body to a pole before lighting firecrackers tied around it. Rajkummar then delivers the line, “So what if I wasn’t born a Maalik, I can surely become one.” The following visuals show Rajkummar walking with his gang, firing at a house and at the police.

Maalik is directed by Pulkit. It is bankrolled by Kumar Taurani and Jay Shewakramani, and also stars Prosenjit Chatterjee, Manushi Chhillar, and Medha Shankr in pivotal roles. The film’s music is composed by Sachin Sanghvi and Jigar Saraiya, with lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya. It is set to release on July 11.

Story continues below this ad

Also read | Mani Ratnam backs Deepika Padukone amid controversy over exit from Sandeep Reddy Vanga and Prabhas’ Spirit: ‘Glad she asked for it’

Rajkummar Rao has seen moderate success at the box office over the past few years, except for Stree 2, which was a major success, minting Rs 857 crore worldwide. His other film Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video minted Rs 58 crore at the box office against the reported budget of Rs 30 crore.

The actor’s last release was Bhool Chuk Maaf, which has been performing well at the box office, collecting Rs 60 crore within 12 days of release. However, the film will face competition from upcoming releases like the multi-starrer Housefull 5 and Kamal Haasan’s Thug Life, which are set to release on June 6 and June 5, respectively.