Director Rajkumar Gupta (second from right) with actress Vidya Balan (in red saree) at the premiere of No One Killed Jessica in Mumbai. Telegraph picture

Jamshedpur, Jan. 11: No One Killed Jessica, but Rajkumar Gupta killed a banker-in-the-making.

For someone born and brought up in a middle class family in a small town, filmmaking was not an obvious career choice. But the 33-year-old Hazaribagh boy with two acclaimed films, Aamir and No One Killed Jessica, in his directorial kitty always followed his heart.

Even though retired bank employee Shyam Bihari Lal wanted son Rajkumar to be a banker right after graduation, he deliberately flunked his Indian Overseas Bank qualifying exams.

“I qualified my written test on my father’s behest but had no interest in the sector. To my horror, I managed to qualify in the written test. So in the interview I simply had to answer everything wrong. Dad was upset. But I followed my dream,” the director told The Telegraph over phone from Mumbai.

In fact, he divulged his “deliberate flunking” only after the critical and commercial success of his debut film Aamir. “To my great relief, dad smiled and said he was happy that I became what I wanted to,” said Gupta with a laugh.

After his Class X from St Xavier’s School, Hazaribagh, Gupta pursued Plus Two at Delhi Public School, Bokaro. He then went to Ramjas College, New Delhi, to graduate in commerce. The film bug had bitten well and truly, so he joined a one-year diploma course in film and television from Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai.

Directing films came gradually. Always interested in creative writing, Gupta started scripting. The fabled Bollywood struggle is something that he too underwent for seven years. Then came his turning point — meeting his mentor Anurag Kashyap with whom he worked in Black Friday and No Smoking as an associate director. “All along, I kept writing scripts. Finally, producers liked Aamir. The film also was critically appreciated,” added Gupta.

For Gupta, schools have had a major role to play in his success. Some celebrities from Jharkhand have taken their families to settle in Mumbai. But not Gupta. His family is still based in Hazaribagh and he loves to visit his hometown. “It is impossible for me to forget Hazaribagh. My family stays there and I love to come home,” Gupta said.

While Jessica is making waves, Gupta has already moved on to his next script, Rapchik Romance. And yes, he would like to film Jharkhand. If so, it would be the third such exposure for the state after Vikramaditya Motwane shot Udaan in Jamshedpur last year and Sanjivan Lal who is currently shooting Bubblegum.

“As a filmmaker, I’d love to give my state its share of recognition and shoot there. But it may take a while,” he said.

Jharkhand’s waiting.