Actor Gajraj Rao admitted that when he was a youngster, he was taken advantage of by people in the film industry. He said that the biggest culprits were executives and assistants, and the scams normally involved underpaying or disrespecting him. He said that he learned his lessons, and decided to forgive wrongdoers, especially if he was sure that he hadn’t made a mistake or stepped out of line himself. Gajraj rose to fame after a starring role in the film Badhaai Ho, although he broke out with a supporting role in Bandit Queen decades earlier.In an interview with Maniesh Paul, the veteran actor said, “In a crowd, the people who misbehave often don’t know why they’re misbehaving. And who are the sort of people who are likely to be disrespectful? It’s the ones who are uneducated. They’re the insecure ones, or the ones who aren’t confident about their skills, or the ones who lack knowledge. Often, it was the production assistants who would be rude, or other such executives.”Also read – Gajraj Rao on why he refuses to reduce his fees now: ‘I struggled for 25 years, slept hungry, listened to abuse’He said that differences would usually come up when people failed to honour commitments. “They would promise you a certain amount, but shortchange you. Long ago, I was doing an ad film where it was decided that I would be paid Rs 20,000 per day for two days’ work. After the first day, they handed me a cheque for Rs 20,000 and told me that I wouldn’t be required any longer. I mentioned that I had been contracted for two days, but they told me that they’d wrapped my portions in one. They don’t understand that I had turned down another job to do this one,” he said.Gajraj Rao is an acclaimed actor, who rose to fame after struggling for decades. Asked if he became frustrated by the struggle, he said in a recent interview with Indian Express, No, I was never disappointed, discouraged, or disheartened about not getting author-backed roles. I did not daydream or fantasise about overnight glory either. I firmly believe in the old Sanskrit saying: Karmanyevadhikaraste, ma phaleshu kadachana—focus on your actions without worrying about the results. I approached every small role that came my way with complete dedication while keeping myself engaged in directing ad films. Life can become bleak if we dwell on what we don’t have instead of celebrating what we do. My mantra has always been to celebrate what you have while working hard for more, side by side.”Appearing on Varun Duggi’s podcast, the actor said that he refuses to reduce his fees now, because his success has come at a cost. He said, “The casting director told me to reduce my fees, said it’s only 20 days work. I told him I wasn’t even charging for those 20 days, I was working for free. I told him that I was charging for all the years of ‘homework’ that I’d done to get here. This was my fees for all those days when I survived on 20 chais, slept hungry, listened to abuse, I used to walk on foot from Town to Andheri… These 20 days are free.”Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt LtdTags:gajraj rao