A miraculous journey for actors like me, we can’t believe it: Manoj
While the insider vs outsider debate continues to have the industry divided, there’s one point most people raise: If only people with connections were getting chances, how do we justify rank outsiders such as Manoj Bajpayee, Nawazuddin Siddiqui or the late Irrfan making it big? Ask Bajpayee and prompt comes the actor’s reply, “This is whataboutery. Everybody knows the question and where it’s being pointed at. Don’t run from the question; answer it. Manoj Bajpayee, or the actors they name, their journey has been miraculous, and we ourselves can’t believe it. It hasn’t been a smooth journey, and all the films we have been a part of, we’ve struggled very hard to make it. Don’t forget that.”
This further points at the choice of films that the 51-yearold has made in a career spanning over two decades. While he floored everyone with his performances in Gangs of Wasseypur (2012) and Aligarh (2016), the actor also balanced it with hardcore commercial films such as Tevar (2015) and Baaghi 2 (2018).
His recent release, Bhosle, did the rounds of many film festivals, and finally released on an OTT platform. While he says he’s happy with the response it has garnered, one wonders what he feels about the fact that the film released directly on the web and not theatres.
Bajpayee rues that films like these aren’t appreciated enough in theatres. “I don’t know how much the makers would be pleased with this if they released it in theatres with their own money... My point is how many theatres could they release it in? A film like Bhosle, how many shows would exhibitors have guaranteed? How right the timings would have been of the shows? How any days would they have kept it in theatres? What I’m talking about is the fate of all independent films I’ve done,” he tells us.
However, this hasn’t affected his resolve to do good cinema. “I’ll keep doing it. The resolve is bigger and stronger than the treatment that we get. If it released now because of the lockdown, I’m much happier. My whole journey is about becoming better. I’m fascinated and in love with this craft,” Bajpayee concludes.
Thank you God! You have answered our prayers!! But it is just the beginning... the first step towards the truth! Full faith on CBI!!,” this tweet by Shweta Singh Kirti, Sushant Singh Rajput’s sister, sums up what the late actor’s fans and family must be feeling as the Supreme Court asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe his death.
Rajput was found dead in his Mumbai flat on June 14, and Mumbai Police said prima facie it was a suicide. On July 28, Rajput’s father Krishna Kishor Singh filed an FIR in Patna, Bihar, accusing Rhea Chakraborty and others of abetting the actor’s suicide. On July 29, she moved the SC to transfer the case to Mumbai, claiming Bihar didn’t have any jurisdiction. After a Patna cop probing the case was forcibly quarantined in Mumbai, the Bihar government on August 4 recommended to the Centre that the death be probed by the CBI. On Wednesday, the SC held the Patna FIR as valid.
Ankita Lokhande, Rajput’s ex, tweeted: “Justice is the truth in action Truth wins .... ”