Manoj Bajpayee is an actor who worked his way to the top and graduated from being a supporting character to a National Award-winning actor. Since he has been part of Bollywood for ages, he has seen it go through the highs and lows.
He has also witnessed the malaise that the industry holds. In a recent interview, the actor shared his two cents on the dark side of Bollywood. Read on!
Manoj Bajpayee opens up on divorce and other ills of Bollywood
Manoj Bajpayee, known for his roles in projects like The Family Man and Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai, was conversing with Sushant Sinha. During their fun chat, the interviewer asked him about the truth behind Bollywood’s dark side, including lavish parties, divorce, and more.
Sharing his two cents on the matter, the Gulmohar actor stated that the Hindi film industry is very small, and there are different kinds of people who need jobs. He added, “If someone is ever caught doing the wrong thing in some corner of the industry, that doesn’t prove anything. Me and my friends and co-stars also belong to the same industry, and I can tell 95% of them are very passionate very sincere not only about the films they are doing but also to their family and near and dear ones and their friends. A few incidents here and there cannot prove that the whole industry is like that.”
Talking about the rise in the number of divorces in the industry, he stated, “If you go to Tees Hazari Court and ask about the divorce rate, you will realize where we have come today, where relationships and marriages are breaking every day. Our society adopted the nuclear family trend, and there are benefits of it too, but the harm that nuclear family trend caused you can see it in the courts.”
Manoj Bajpayee further opined, “So, is the industry not part of society? People who belong to the same society are part of the industry. When people belong to the same society, then isn’t it obvious that the change in society will also be visible in the industry? Previously, in the same industry, there were not as many divorces as there are today. But in its behavior, the industry is very open-minded and don’t tie themselves to any state or country, which is quite a good thing,” he said, adding that creative people must be open-minded.
Did you know Manoj Bajpayee refused to play Jackie Shroff’s role in Devdas?
In the same interview, when the actor was asked if he ever said no to a movie, Manoj revealed that he was offered Jackie Shroff’s role Chunnilal in Devdas, but he declined.
Sharing the reason behind taking this step, the actor said, “I told Sanjay (Sanjay Leela Bhansali), ‘Sanjay, yaar, meri toh hamesha se ichchha thi Devdas karne ki (I always wanted to play Devdas). That film became a superhit, but I have regrets about letting it go. I’d wanted to play Devdas since my theatre days, ever since I’d watched Dilip Kumar’s film or read the book. But I never felt bad,” he added.
On the work front, the Silence 2 actor will be next seen in Bhaiyya Ji, followed by Despatch and The Fable.
