Rakul Preet Singh on love, gratitude, and the power of letting go

Gratitude for all the lovely things coming my way,” gushes Cosmopolitan India’s digital cover star Rakul Preet Singh, as she reflects on a year that’s brought both professional highs and personal clarity. It’s the one affirmation she seems to be living by, especially through the festive stretch that marked the close of 2025. Calm, centred, and quietly joyful, Singh feels like she is exactly where she is meant to be.

Over the years, Singh has carved out a cross industry presence, moving seamlessly between Hindi, Telugu, and Tamil cinema. Known for balancing commercial blockbusters with author-backed roles, she has built a reputation for choosing parts that allow her to evolve with each phase of her career. While on one hand, she has done commercial films like Yaariyan (2014), Sarrainodu (2016), and Thank God (2022), on the other, she has balanced it with roles in films like Rarandoi Veduka Chudham (2017), Aiyaary (2018), and Doctor G (2022). 2025, in particular, has been a standout year with De De Pyaar De 2 reaffirming her box office pull and her ability to spark conversations that extend beyond the screen.

Beyond the age gap

Looking back at 2025, Singh resists the urge to define it by just one milestone. Still, she acknowledges the professional high. “If I have to materialistically put something out there, it would be De De Pyaar De 2,” she says. “The response, the love, the industry calls...that’s been the best gift!”

Her film also opened up a larger dialogue—one around relationships, agency, and age differences. For Singh, the discussion goes far beyond numbers. “I feel what is more important is not the technical age of a couple, but rather the mental maturity,” she says. “The deeper meaning of the film is the gist of it. It’s not about the age gap. It’s more about how no one can really decide the fate of your relationship. Any relationship is a gamble. If that decision has no certain result, then it’d rather be your own decision, be it good or bad,” she says. “That’s the messaging...where you get to have agency of your life,” she adds.

Of slow mornings and festive chaos

Away from conversations and cameras, Singh treasures moments of stillness, especially slow mornings, which she admits are rare. “I love my mornings a little more calm, a little more to myself,” she quips. Life has shifted for her beautifully since she married actor-filmmaker Jackky Bhagnani, and Singh seems to be soaking it all in. “It’s amazing to wake up next to him. We really love that morning bonding time while we’re sipping on our coffee and figuring out our day.”

Festive season, however, brings its own rhythm. “During Diwali and Christmas, it’s not an early morning because you end up having such a late night,” Singh says. “With the Mumbai Diwali scene, it’s hectic. The festivity goes out of the window after a point, you end up sleeping so late and wake up at noon; it’s all haywire,” she shares. When asked what instantly brings her peace, Singh says, “meditation and yoga” without wasting a breath. Introduced to meditation only a few years ago, she admits it changed her relationship with chaos. “Earlier, I was a very hyper person. I still am to some extent, but I understand better how you can maintain a centre even in the middle of chaos now,” she shares.

Affirmations play a quiet but constant role in Singh’s life. In fact, her phone screen carries one she wrote herself. “The best affirmation is to believe it’s happening. I always say gratitude for all the lovely things coming my way because that just encapsulates everything.”

2025 also taught the actor to slow down in ways she had not planned for. “In 2024, I had an injury. And it took me a year to normalise things and get back.” The rehab journey, she says, was as mental as it was physical. “I was a person who used to work at a very fast pace. I used to think I can do it all. But I learnt that sometimes, you just have to go with the flow. Things may not happen as per your plan. The biggest lesson in 2025 for me has been learning to surrender,” she adds.

Welcome 2026

As she steps into the new year, Singh has a lot more waiting for her, personally and professionally. “I have my next release, Pati Patni Aur Woh 2, in March. I’ll have two to three releases next year. I just hope that I get more opportunities to push the envelope, to try different things, and to create disruption. That would be my hope for 2026,” she signs off.

This article first appeared in Cosmopolitan India's January-February 2026 print edition.

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