Atharva Ruke: Sports Gave Me Discipline, Comedy Gave Me a Voice (Actor, Digital Storyteller, 914K Followers)

Atharva Ruke Interview

 “From Sudarshan to Don Aunty and now the lead face of T-Series’ track KASA TARI Atharva Ruke opens up about comedy, culture, discipline, and creative expansion.”

Q. You call yourself a digital creator, actor, and sportsman. How did this journey actually start, and when did you begin owning that identity publicly?

If I rewind everything, the spark began around 2012. Some of my friends had computers at home, and there was a little theatre near our building. We’d watch movies together, and slowly that world pulled me in. At the same time, cricket was everything for me. 

I was crazy about the sport. I played leather ball cricket, went for nets coaching, and honestly, if academics hadn’t messed things up, I might have grown in that direction. Failing in ninth and tenth changed my path, but it didn’t kill my interest in performing. When my father got our first Samsung touchscreen phone, my friends and I started making short films using “pause–pause” recording. We didn’t know anything about technique; we were just kids trying to tell stories.

In 2014, when a computer finally entered our house, the game changed. I discovered vloggers like Casey Neistat, Roman Atwood, Mumbaikar Nikhil, and Flying Beast. Their work pushed me into a different mindset. I started consciously shooting and editing on my phone, experimenting, and learning what felt natural to me. Instagram Reels and YouTube eventually became the places where I could show what I had been building for years. That’s when I stopped treating this like a hobby and started owning it publicly. I’m a creator, an actor, and yes, a sportsman. All three are part of my identity, and I don’t want to let go of any of them.

Q. Characters like Khalla, Don Aunty, and Drunk Kaki have become almost iconic. How do you bring a new character to life, and which one is the hardest to step out of after shooting?

My characters usually begin with observation. People I meet, the way friends joke, someone's tone, someone's habits, everything becomes material. Some characters are pure fiction, some are semi-fictional, and some carry a hint of someone I once knew. I always keep them raw. If a character feels too polished, it stops being funny. I treat every character the way we treat dal at home. You keep the base simple and then add your own tadka. That tadka is the small detail that makes a character feel real.

Sudarshan is the closest to me. He started as a joke among friends, the way someone would speak softly or say “Sairam” again and again. Over time, he became a whole person in my head, delicate, shy, a little unsure, but honest. Maybe that’s why he’s the hardest to step out of when the camera stops. There’s a piece of me in him. People often call what I do “mimicry,” but it isn’t. Mimicry has its own craft. What I do is acting. I’m building worlds and personalities. That's why I keep creating new characters. I enjoy living in these worlds for a moment before jumping into the next.

Q. Your comedy mixes Marathi culture with observational humour. How do you balance satire, relatability, and respect for the cultures you portray?

Culture matters to me deeply. I never create a character to mock anyone. My comedy comes from affection and familiarity. And I think people feel that sincerity. I’ve had someone from Assam message me saying she enjoys the Marathi accent in my videos. That kind of connection means a lot.

I also love exploring other cultures: Gujarati, Tamil, and North Indian. I’ve already made Gujarati content, and I’m learning Tamil for a new video with Don Aunty. Every culture has its own sweetness, and I try to highlight that without making it a joke about the culture itself. People think Reels are temporary, but I don’t agree. Laughter is never temporary. If someone’s mood is down and one small video lifts it from here to there, that's an impact. And a lot of that comes from staying real to the culture I show. Not exaggerated. Not offensive. Just honest.

Q. You also call yourself a sportsman. How do sports and training influence your consistency and performance as a creator?

Sports taught me discipline in a way nothing else could. I still wake up early, run, play badminton and football, and cricket will always be my first love. People look at me and assume I’m fragile, but once we’re on the field, they’re shocked at how fast and athletic I actually am.

Sports keep my body active and my mind sharp. When I’m physically fit, I perform better on camera. There’s quickness in my reactions and honesty in my expressions. It even helps me build stamina for long shooting and editing days. And here's the thing: people think creative work doesn't need discipline. I think it needs even more. Playing sports all these years helped me carry that discipline into content creation. It’s the backbone of how I work.

Q. Between acting, comedy, and sports, what’s a side of Atharva that people still don’t fully know?

People mostly know me through characters and humour, but sports are still a huge part of who I am. Cricket, martial arts, badminton, and football shaped me long before content creation. That discipline never left. I still train, still push myself physically, and that directly affects how I perform on camera.

Another side people don’t always see is how seriously I take storytelling beyond comedy. That’s where projects like KASA TARI come in. Being the lead actor in a T-Series hip-hop music video was exciting because it pulled me out of my usual space. The song is wild, energetic, chaotic in the best way, and the video allowed me to explore performance without punchlines. It was pure expression.

I like testing myself in new formats. Comedy will always be home, but I don’t want to box myself into one identity. Whether it’s a character, a cultural sketch, or a music video like KASA TARI, I want to keep surprising myself first. If that surprises the audience too, even better.

Bio

Atharva Ruke is a digital creator, actor, and performer known for blending sharp observation, cultural humour, and grounded storytelling. He has built a loyal community of over 900,000 followers on Instagram and 46,000 subscribers on YouTube, establishing himself as one of the most recognisable young voices in Marathi character-based comedy.

His universe is filled with memorable personas like Khalla, Don Aunty, Drunk Kaki, Vahini, and the fan-favourite Sudarshan characters rooted in everyday life, language, and cultural familiarity. Beyond comedy, Atharva is deeply influenced by sports, with cricket, football, badminton, and martial arts shaping his discipline, stamina, and on-screen presence.

In 2025, Atharva expanded into music video storytelling as the lead actor in KASA TARI, a high energy hip-hop track released by T-Series, and a special appearance by Naezy. The project showcased a new side of his performance: physical, expressive, and free from comedic structure.

Creating in Marathi, Hindi, and English, and experimenting with Gujarati and Tamil cultural content, Atharva believes every language carries its own rhythm and soul. His goal remains simple: to make people feel lighter, more seen, and more connected whether through laughter, movement, or storytelling.

Instagram: Atharva Ruke

Interviewed by Monika Bhardwaj