Over 65 films in a career spanning more than two decades, with lesser screen presence and fame and more respect and credibility, Manoj Bajpayee is not your conventional Bollywood actor. The man is credited, not for his perfectly built physique or making box office records but, for the newness he brings onscreen and the versatile characters he essays.
Over the years, he has made a mark in both, commercial and art cinema. Now, he will be seen in director Milap Zaveri’s Satyameva Jayate starring John Abraham and Aisha Sharma. The film releases on August 15. Recently PeepingMoon.com sat with the brilliant actor for a chat and inquisitively asked about his views on the changing dynamics and evolution of film craft in the country.
“If an actor doesn’t take home his character, he is not serious”
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On being asked if his craft has evolved in last two decades and he answered, “Yes, with time the craft changes. I grow and evolve. Every day is a learning experience, your perspective changes. That’s why acting is completely related to life and the actors. Perspective is changing and you are becoming wiser. Your ways of looking at changing things changes, that’s how the craft also changes." When asked if he critiques his craft, he said, “If I had to do Satya 20 years later, like now, I would do it differently. That is why I don’t watch my films. I know if I do, I will be frustrated and wish that I could do it again (the role). So why to feel frustrated? Move on.”
Manoj is known for bringing every character to life that he plays on the celluloid. Talking about his characters, the actor shared, “It’s my belief that if an actor doesn’t take his character home, that means he’s not serious. Invariably you take it home. For a character like I played in Gangs of Wasseypur is dangerous. He’s a gangster but more importantly, he’s a womanizer. It takes time to get out of it. You can’t take it anywhere else but home. You have to be very careful, else the wife will throw the womanizer part out (laughs)."
With a whirlpool of films, of all kinds, seeing the light of the day unlike the past, Manoj commented on the current scenario of filmmaking. “Things are happening but I will not say they have changed. Everything started changing only after Satya. New kind of filmmakers, a new line of actors like Nawaz (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), who started coming in, are doing well today. It’s great now. Earlier it used to be pathetic. But there’s still a long way to go.”
Later, he even shared his thoughts on the situation with cinema halls and box office mentality. “Look at the number of single screens that have withered away. We should have more cinemas for the number of people in this country.”
But what about his films' clash with Akshay Kumar's Gold at the box office? “We are still talking about box office collections. Journalists covering actors, performance and the film, should not talk about box office collections. The moment you start talking about figures, you are demeaning 95 per cent of the film. Trade journalists have their area. They can talk about it” he concluded.
