Television serial makers resort to ploys to sustain viewer ship – a new track, a new character or someone getting lost, etc. This writer hadn’t been watching Uttaran in a while now as the convoluted pseudo tragedy filled tracks had lost my interest; I preferred to watch Maharana Pratap. But as I cursorily watched a recent promo of Uttaran, I noticed a new character – Maharani. I was intrigued with this new addition. I made it a point to watch it the following week. Of course, by then I knew who was playing Maharani – Rajesh Khera, courtesy his Facebook share.

I have known the actor from the time he did Tara. Having seen him in a clutch of motley roles on television and films, it has been only in the last few years, that I have sat up and noticed the actor in Rajesh Khera. He caught my eye as Maddy, the gay fashion designer in Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin. Khera’s was an astute performance of a character usually made to appear ridiculous with bawdy acting, tasteless nuances and gaudy outfits. But Maddy didn’t go that over the top nor at all awkward. Khera had donned another skin as Maddy complete with bizarre clothes, etc. There wasn’t a shred of objectionable traits in his performance. If at all, he could be endearing enough to make you smile.

Soon I saw him as the stern disciplinarian Major Bhargav in Left Right Left. Autocratic to the tip of his moustache, a meticulously placed beret and an eccentric glint in his eye, he was the bane of those cadets under training. His stiff upper lip, clipped dialogue delivery and body language that spoke army discipline and rigorous training, made Major Bhargav a flesh and blood character. Such an authentic portrayal, as sometimes even the viewer disliked Major Bhargav.

Now as Maharani, I would say its Khera’s tour de force performance — to date. On weeknights, he fills the screen as the menacing madam of a brothel who makes even the bouncers  and the  pimps grimace with pain as he scratches their palms with a concealed blade – ‘altering their lifelines’. It’s the most complex character Rajesh Khera would have handled so far. His voice timbre is just right so that he can be soft and menacing and loud and raucous without a trace of straining his throat. Some of the intimidation comes across as memorable phrases like Maharani Ki ungli pakad ke chalegi….”  His body language is incredible — the way he works the sari pallu, the gajras in the hair, the jewellery and yes, the stringy choli on the broad back! Moving with grace and ease, with a few feminine gestures, he cajoles one minute, and turns around holding a knife to the victim’s throat, the next.  None of it is offensive, vulgar or bawdy.

Any lesser actor would have toppled into a dismal heap. But Rajesh Khera has walked the knife’s edge as Maharani, keeping in balance his voice modulation, his nuances, and his movements and delivering a fine performance at the end of it all.

If Khera doesn’t figure as the recipient of performance awards by the critics, at least, at the many TV awards, I would be disappointed by the disservice to one of our consummate actors.

 

PS: Rajesh Khera, acknowledge your television performances and have them listed separately from the films. TV has got you recognition three times over.