Rajkumar entered the film industry after his long stint as a dramatist with Gubbi Veeranna's Gubbi Drama Company, which he joined at the age of eight before he got his first break as a lead in the 1954 film "Bedara Kannappa". He went on to work in over 205 films essaying a variety of roles and excelling in portraying mythological and historical characters in films such as "Bhakta Kanakadasa" (1960), "Ranadheera Kanteerava" (1960), "Satya Harishchandra" (1965), "Immadi Pulikeshi" (1967), "Sri Krishnadevaraya" (1970), "Bhakta Kumbara" (1974), "Mayura" (1975), "Babruvahana" (1977) and "Bhakta Prahlada" (1983).