Rajpal Yadav’s portrayal of Chhota Pandit in Akshay Kumar and Priyadarshan’s cult comedy-horror film ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’ continues to remain one of the most iconic comic performances in Hindi cinema. From his quirky expressions to the unforgettable agarbatti look, the character has stayed etched in the minds of audiences even years after the film’s release.Now, in a recent conversation with Bollywood Bubble, the actor opened up about how the famous look was created on set and why he approached the character with sensitivity and respect towards religious sentiments.
Rajpal Yadav explains the thought behind Chhota Pandit
Speaking about the inspiration behind the role, Rajpal Yadav connected Chhota Pandit to the concept of a “vidushak” from Bharat Muni’s ‘Natyashastra’.Explaining the idea, he said, “Chhota Pandit joh tha, woh pehli baat maaniye Bharat Muni ke Natyashastra mein alag-alag bahut saare characters ki kalpana ki gayi hai. Usme ek vidushak hota hai” (The first thing is that in Bharat Muni’s ‘Natyashastra’, many different kinds of characters have been imagined. One of them is the ‘vidushak’ or clown).He further explained, “Vidushak yeh hota hai ki woh apni darbaar mein mazaak banwata hai aur logo ko hasaata hai” (A vidushak is someone who creates humour in the royal court and makes people laugh).Rajpal Yadav also revealed that he was extremely cautious while portraying the role because of its connection with religious imagery. He shared, “Main actually dharm ko poojta hoon. Toh yeh character mere liye andar hi andar bahut challenging tha ki agar zara sa bhi maine idhar-udhar kiya, toh hamare dharm ka mazaak na udd jaaye” (I truly respect religion. So this character was internally very challenging for me because I did not want even a slight mistake to make fun of our faith). The actor also recalled how incense sticks always carried spiritual significance in his household growing up.
The iconic look came from a mosquito repellent stick
One of the most surprising revelations from the interview was that Chhota Pandit’s legendary agarbatti look actually originated from mosquito repellent sticks used during the shoot. Recalling the moment, Rajpal said, “Arrey woh actually machhar bhagaane wali lambi agarbatti thi, joh shooting mein hoti thi” (Those were actually long mosquito-repellent incense sticks used on film sets).He further added, “Hum log usko tod lete the aur laga lete the” (We used to break them and place them around the look). According to the actor, the falling ash from the sticks added an unintentionally funny visual element to the character.
Rajpal Yadav pitched the idea to Priyadarshan
Rajpal also revealed that the original plan for the look was very different. Initially, Priyadarshan wanted to decorate the character with flowers because of the temple setting in the film. However, Rajpal felt the character needed a more eccentric and spontaneous appearance to appear genuinely funny instead of forced.Sharing how he convinced Priyadarshan, he said, “Maine kaha, ‘Dada, yeh lambi wali dena zara’” (I told him, “Dada, please give me that long incense stick”). The actor then explained that Chhota Pandit’s humour worked because the character behaved foolishly without intentionally trying to be funny.
Priyadarshan immediately approved the look
After experimenting with the agarbatti styling, Rajpal walked up to Priyadarshan to show him the final appearance. Recalling the filmmaker’s reaction, the actor shared, “Unhone dekha toh hans pade aur bole, ‘Wah! Aaya isko’” (The moment he saw it, he burst out laughing and said, “Wow! Now the character has arrived”). Rajpal added that from that very moment, Chhota Pandit’s iconic personality was born.
Do you agree that the character Chhota Pandit connects with audiences of all ages?
Ending the conversation on an emotional note, Rajpal Yadav explained why the character connected with audiences across generations. He said, “Yeh kisi ka mazaak udaane ke liye nahi tha, sabko gudgudane ke liye tha” (It was never meant to mock anyone. It was only meant to gently entertain and make people smile).The actor also shared that saints, elders and family audiences appreciated the character because it carried innocence and purity instead of disrespect. Even today, Chhota Pandit remains one of the most loved comic characters from Hindi cinema, proving how spontaneous creativity often leads to unforgettable movie moments.
