I don’t sit down and analyse my career: Bajpayee
Actor Manoj Bajpayee completes 24 years in Bollywood this year. That’s over two decades of delivering impactful performances in films such as Satya, Special 26 and Aligarh, ever since he made his debut with Drohkaal in 1994.
Asked how the journey has been so far, Bajpayee says, “You tell me... that’s not for me to analyse. I just do a film, and go home. I don’t sit down and analyse my career. There are miles to go before one can really think about it. I don’t have the time nor inclination to go back in time. I look forward to what I am doing in the present.”
In his upcoming release, Satyameva Jayate, the actor will play the role of a cop. He donned the uniform earlier this year, too, for Tiger Shroff-starrer Baaghi 2. “I’ve played a cop in some eight to ten films, but it doesn’t matter. I look at the person I am playing, not the uniform,” says Bajpayee, who focuses on understanding the character and doing justice to it. “It’s important for me to know where this person is coming from, what are his conflicts, and so on.”
He’s also careful when picking projects, and doesn’t do films that don’t get him excited. Talking about Satyameva Jayate, which co-stars John Abraham and will explore the subject of corruption, the actor says, “It’s a commercial film, as they call it in filmi language. The whole purpose of it is to entertain people, keep the adrenaline high.”
Has Manoj ever been in a situation which involved corruption? He responds, “Everybody in a developing country faces corruption in some form or the other; we are no different. It [all] depends from person to person. I somehow give [off vibes] that I don’t take this kind of bulls**t.”