This IITian quit a high-paying job to become an actor, left Mumbai after failure, now stars in a ₹270 cr hit

From becoming Jeetu Bhaiya in TVF shows to an OTT star and then starring in Mirzapur: The Movie, Jitendra Kumar's journey has been anything but conventional.

The debate around nepotism in the film industry keeps coming up, but Bollywood has also seen outsiders carve their own path and build a place for themselves without any family connections. Jitendra Kumar is one such example. The actor, currently seen as Bablu Pandit in Mirzapur: The Movie, was a bright student who graduated from IIT Kharagpur before giving up a corporate career to pursue his long-standing dream of becoming an actor.

Jitendra Kumar stars in Mirapur: The Movie.

From making people laugh in TVF's early YouTube videos to becoming one of the most recognisable faces of the OTT boom and eventually making his mark in films, Jitendra's journey has been anything but conventional. So, how did an IITian turn into 'Jeetu Bhaiya' and eventually make his way to the big screen? Let's take a look.

IIT put the acting bug in him; he later quit a high-paying job to pursue his dream

Jitendra comes from Khairthal, a small town in Rajasthan. Since he was good at studies, his parents decided to send him to Kota for IIT coaching. During his school days, Jitendra used to participate in plays, but his interest in theatre developed seriously after he got admission to IIT Kharagpur. There, he became actively involved in theatre and the Hindi Technology Dramatics Society.

It was at IIT that he met Biswapati Sarkar, who later became an Executive Creative Director and writer at The Viral Fever (TVF). Sarkar recognised Jitendra's acting ability and invited him to join TVF in 2012. Right after college, Jitendra moved to Mumbai and shot his first short-form video with TVF. In a recent interaction with IVM Pop, Jitendra shared that his first video did not even get 10,000 views on YouTube.

Biswapati Sarkar and Jitendra Kumar during a stage play at the IIT campus.

Quit acting, only to find out his TVF video had gone viral

Jitendra struggled during his initial days at TVF. He revealed that he worked as an assistant director and, when his second video failed to garner any views, he decided to leave Mumbai.

He got a job in Bengaluru through a friend and worked there for nine months. While Jitendra found himself stuck in this joyless corporate job, Biswapati called and informed him that his second video had gone viral. That video was -- Munna Jazbaati: The Q-tiya Intern. It became Jitendra Kumar's early breakthrough in 2013. The video reportedly crossed 3 million views, putting him on the map as a new internet performer.

This pushed Jitendra to leave his high-paying job and return to acting. He went on to star in several popular TVF videos and sketches, including Tech Conversations With Dad, A Day With and TVF Bachelors. Jitendra became known for playing relatable, slightly confused and everyday Indian characters that audiences couldn't get enough of.

First face of digital streaming

In 2014, Jitendra moved from short YouTube sketches to longer-form digital storytelling with TVF's Permanent Roommates. He played Prathik in the popular YouTube show, which established him as one of the recognisable faces of India's emerging digital entertainment space. For the unversed, Permanent Roommates is considered one of India's first major web series and arrived well before mainstream OTT platforms took over the market.

The TVF rise

Jitendra's name soon became synonymous with his character Jitendra "Jeetu" Maheshwari in TVF's Pitchers, which premiered in 2015. His character became hugely popular and cemented his association with the name Jeetu.

This was followed by the success of Kota Factory, where he played Jeetu Bhaiya. The character became one of his most iconic roles and further established Jitendra as a popular face of the digital entertainment boom.

OTT came calling

In 2020, Jitendra began playing Abhishek Tripathi, popularly known as Sachiv Ji, in Panchayat. Released during the Covid-19 lockdown, the series became a massive hit with audiences and developed a loyal fan base. The Prime Video show turned Jitendra into a household name. The show has completed four seasons so far, with fans awaiting the release of Season 5 this year.

From small films to Mirzapur mania

Jitendra started his film career with smaller projects such as Shuruaat Ka Interval and Gone Kesh. However, his first big film was Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan, in which he starred opposite Ayushmann Khurrana. While the film was a hit, it did not immediately result in Jitendra bagging major film roles. He went on to star in projects such as Chaman Bahaar, Jaadugar and Dry Day.

This year, however, Jitendra took a major leap by stepping into a big commercial project. He replaced Vikrant Massey as Bablu Pandit in Mirzapur: The Movie. The film, based on the popular web series, has been a massive hit at the box office, crossing ₹270 crore worldwide.

After years of struggle, moving between YouTube, television, OTT and films, Jitendra Kumar now has a ₹270-crore-plus worldwide hit as part of his CV.