A prominent face in Bollywood, Rajesh Sharma is an Indian actor who is mostly seen as the villain or in comic roles. The actor who made his debut on the silver screen in 1996 with the super hit movie, Maachis is also a renowned personality in the Bengali film industry. During the 2000s the actor appeared only in Bengali movies before eventually making a comeback to Bollywood in 2005 with the critically acclaimed film Parineeta directed by Pradeep Sarkar. The actor has worked with several renowned filmmakers and actors from both Bengali and Hindi film industry like Salman Khan, Vidya Balan, Naseeruddin Shah, Rani Mukerji, Dibakar Bandopadhyay, Aparna Sen, and Haranath Chakraborty.

Early Life
Born in a typical middle-class Punjabi family in Ludhiana, Punjab, Rajesh Sharma is the son of Late Gurucharan Sharma and Amarjit Sharma. After completing his schooling from Bhawanipur Adarsh Hindi High School in Kolkata, the actor went to pursue his graduation from the NSD (National School of Drama) in New Delhi. The actor who has established himself as one of the prominent actors in the Bengali film industry learned Bengali from his neighbors as well as by watching several Bengali dramas at Muktangon.

At the age of 17, Rajesh Sharma joined a drama academy where he got a chance to feature in several plays like Gudia Ki Ghar and Rangakarmi. After gaining substantial acting experience on stage, the actor moved to acting in TV serials and films.

Personal Life
Rajesh Sharma married, Sudipta Chakraborty, a Bengali actress in 2005. However, after being together for four years, the couple divorced in 2009. Two years later, the actor married Sangeeta Sharma in 2011.

Movie Career
The actor made his acting debut on the silver screen with the critically acclaimed film, Maachis directed by Gulzar and co-starring, Chandrachur Singh, Jimmy Shergill, Raj Zutshi, Tabu and Om Puri. The film based on the aftermath of the assassination of the Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi and the subsequent Anti-Sikh riots in 1984 was a huge commercial hit and won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. Following his debut movie, the actor took a sabbatical for four years and made his comeback in 2000 with a Bengali film titled Paromitar Ek Din, written and directed by Aparna Sen. The film starring, Rituparna Sengupta, Aparna Sen, and Soumitra Chatterjee won several national and international awards including the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali, Ecumenical Jury Award the 35th International Film Festival of Karlovy Vary.

In 2002, the actor appeared in four Bengali films, viz. Sathi, Desh, Shubho Mahurat, and Sonar Sansar. While Sathi and Sonar Sansar did not garner any attention, Sathi directed by Haranath Chakraborty received mixed critical reviews and Shubho Mahurat won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali in 2003. Over the next couple of years, the actor had two releases, Bombaiyer Bombete (2003) and Badsha The King (2004). While Bombaiyer Bombete received negative reviews, it emerged to be a commercial hit but the later did not create any buzz the box office.

After a gap of nine years, the actor made his comeback to Bollywood film industry in 2005 with the critically acclaimed film titled Parineeta directed by Pradeep Sarkar. The film starring Vidya Balan, Saif Ali Khan, Sanjay Dutt, Raima Sen and Dia Mirza grossed more than 62.35 crore INR worldwide. The following year, director Dibakar Banerjee cast him in the comedy-drama film, Khosla Ka Ghosla alongside Anupam Kher, Boman Irani, Vinay Phatak, Ranvir Shorey and Parvin Dabas. The film, which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film (Hindi) in 2006 was later remade in Tamil as Poi Solla Porom. His other two movies of the year, Shikar and Kranti, both Bengali films were average hits.

After 2006, Rajesh Sharma was out of action for three years before making a comeback in 2009 with the Bengali film, Chaa-e Chutti directed by Aniket Chattopadhyay. The following year, the actor had a single released, a black comedy Hindi film title Ishqiya starring Vidya Balan, Naseeruddin Shah, and Arshad Warsi. The film which was screened at the 34th Cairo International Film Festival got positive critical reviews. Following the success of Ishqiya, the actor next appeared in No One Killed Jessica, a biographical thriller film based on the true story of Jessica Lal murder case. The film starring Rani Mukerji and Vidya Balan won several awards and recognitions including the Most Entertaining Social Film at the BIG Star Entertainment Awards. It also emerged to be a commercial hit, grossing more than 58 crore INR. His other Hindi films of the year, Chillar Party directed by Nitesh Tiwari and Vikas Bahl and The Dirty Picture directed by Milan Lutharia were both commercial and critical hits with Chillar party winning the National Film Award for Best Children`s Film in 2011.

In 2012, the actor had 11 releases to his name, nine films in Bengali and two in Hindi. His first film of the year was a Hindi film, Chaalis Chauraasi directed by Hriday Shetty. The film starring Naseeruddin Shah, Kay Kay Menon, Ravi Kishan and Atul Kulkarni was an average earner. While his other Hindi film of the year, Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana received positive reviews and emerged to be a commercial hit, none of his Bengali films garnered any attention at the box office. The following year, in 2013 the actor had a mixed year. While two of his Hindi films, Special 26 and B.A. Pass won critical acclaim, his other movies Shuddh Desi Romance and Ghanchakkar got mixed reviews. His Bengali films of the year too had contrasting results, while Ganesh Talkies did not fare well at the box office, Mishawr Rawhoshyo directed by Srijit Mukherji became one of the biggest hits of 2013.

Rajesh Sharma had a forgettable year in 2014 as none of his fours films viz. Pizza, Strings of Passion, Ekkess Toppon Ki Salaami, and the Bengali film Taan did not create any impact at the box office. The following year, the actor starred in four big banner films including Tevar, Tanu Weds Manu Returns, Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Dolly Ki Doli. While only Tevar bombed at the box office, the rest of the films not only garnered mostly positive reviews but also emerged to be a box office hits. The actor`s 2016 releases include Azhar, a film based on the life of former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin and the biographical drama, M.S.Dhoni: the Untold Story directed by Neeraj Pandey. The actor started the year 2017 with a small role in the Vishal Mishra directed comedy film Coffee With D. His other film of the year includes Irada, an eco-thriller directed by Aparna Singh. Rajesh Sharma`s 2020 project includes Laxmii.