Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; February 1, 2022)

After being in a committed relationship for 11 years, Patralekhaa tied the knot in an intimate wedding ceremony in Chandigarh last November. Not the one to talk about his personal life very often, Rajkummar Rao, who will soon be seen in the upcoming Badhaai Do, releasing on February 11 in theatres, gets candid about his wedding and how life has unfolded after that. Read on…

Patralekhaa and you tied the knot two months ago. What does it feel like?
It’s a beautiful feeling. I am so elated to be married to Patralekhaa. She is my best friend, the love of my life, my family and my everything.

You both have been a couple for a decade and have lived in for a few years. What made you want to take the plunge, finally?
As you rightly said, we have been living in for a while now. I would always be out shooting, and she would be out for her shoots. The last two years, which included the lockdowns, was the time we could spend with each other. At that point, we thought that when we are so sure of spending the rest of our lives together, let’s just do this (get married).

Has marriage changed your outlook towards life or each other?
Something changes on a subconscious level. I feel more complete now. We are still getting used to the idea of being husband and wife. I love calling her wife now, just for fun, though.

Patralekhaa once let us in on a secret — your love for watching movies alone in theatres and having pani puri solo. Is that the same even today?
(Laughs!) Yes, I do that, especially if I am out of town and Patra is not around. Even recently, when I shot in Lucknow, whenever we had our day off, I would go out and watch movies alone. I like that.

You are currently busy promoting your film Badhaai Do , but are there any new post marriage rituals that Patralekhaa and you follow?
We are just the way we were. We talk to each other a lot throughout the day if we are out on our respective shoots. And we talk at length! Thanks to technology, we connect over video calls. People often say that after 11 years of being together, the desire to talk is not the same as it is in the first or second year of a relationship. With us, it’s the opposite. Our interactions and the span of our interactions have only increased.