Satya, Gangs of Wasseypur, Aligarh and The Family Man: How Manoj Bajpayee has quietly remained ‘Mumbai ka king'

Indian Express

23-04-2025

A look at Manoj Bajpayee's career and the phrase 'success isn't linear' rings remarkably true. The actor was content doing theatre for almost a decade before a life-changing encounter with Shekhar Kapur, who persuaded him to move to Mumbai and try his hand at films. Manoj began his cinematic journey with Shekhar's National Award-winning Bandit Queen (1994) and went on to star in films that not only transformed his career but also helped redefine Hindi cinema.
However, not all of these films were commercial hits. There were phases when he delivered back-to-back flops, and many thought his career was over. But like a seasoned boxer, every time he was knocked down by the weight of setbacks, he rose and punched back – one performance at a time. 'I never let my wants increase so much so that I lose the freedom to do projects that I like,' he said in an interview with Samdish Bhatia.
Today, on the occasion of Manoj Bajpayee's birthday, we take a look at the films through which Manoj, 56, punched back at critics and doubters, reclaiming his throne as one of the finest performers in Hindi cinema.
Satya (1998)
' Mumbai ka king kaun?' After starring in Shekhar Kapur's Bandit Queen, Manoj Bajpayee made history by playing one of the most influential characters in Hindi cinema, Bhiku Mhatre, in Ram Gopal Varma's Satya. The film released in the same year that Karan Johar made his directorial debut with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, marking the beginning of a partnership with Shah Rukh Khan that would go on to shape mainstream Bollywood for years to come. Meanwhile, Manoj and RGV were quietly building their own cinematic universe and their own iconic partnership. While KKHH catered to the masses, the gritty world of Satya spoke to an audience that would remain loyal to the film even 27 years after its release. Satya was Manoj's career-defining performance and his career had just begun.
Kaun (1999)
Following the success and acclaim of Satya, Ram Gopal Varma and Manoj Bajpayee teamed up once again for a tightly packed, nail-biting thriller — a film that would eventually serve as a handbook for future thrillers. Kaun had all the elements that could've led to its failure: a low budget, a single location, no costume changes, and just three characters – Manoj, Urmila Matondkar, and Sushant Singh. But like Satya, Kaun was an anomaly for its time. It released in the same year as family dramas like Hum Saath Saath Hain, Biwi No.1, and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam ruled the box office, yet Kaun quietly found its audience and went on to become a cult classic.
RGV had a specific vision for Manoj's character, but Manoj pushed back. Without fearing his director, he insisted on playing the role his way. He infused his character with a leech-like quality, something both eerie and repulsive, making him unforgettable.
Shool (1999)
Recently, RGV and Manoj Bajpayee announced their reunion for a horror comedy titled Police Station Mein Bhoot, and fans couldn't keep calm. One of the standout results of the same partnership was the National Award-winning Shool. Set in his home state of Bihar, Shool saw Manoj play an honest cop battling a corrupt system. Unlike today's cop dramas that rely on over-the-top action and theatrics, Shool delivered a raw, gritty portrayal of systemic decay. It wasn't a film that turned Manoj into a commercial star, but it established him as a serious actor.
'The character I played in Shool had a deep impact on my subconscious. My life was imbalanced. I had to seek a psychiatrist's help. I was also advised to stay away from acting for a few years,' Manoj Bajpayee revealed in the book Manoj Bajpayee: The Definitive Biography.
Pinjar (2003)
The early 2000s weren't the best years of Manoj Bajpayee's career in terms of commercial success, but he still delivered some truly impactful performances in films like Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar, Zubeidaa, and Aks, which was his first major project alongside Amitabh Bachchan. Following these, he starred in Pinjar, which earned him his second National Award after Satya.
Like some of his earlier films, Pinjar didn't fare well at the box office, but it gave Manoj the opportunity to portray a deeply complex character, a cruel man who gets a redemption arc. Set against the backdrop of Partition, Pinjar told a harrowing story of Partition while also advocating for cause of humanity over religious biases. It is one of those films that would be difficult to imagine being made today.
Gangs of Wasseypur (2012)
The book Manoj Bajpayee: The Definitive Biography also notes that the critical acclaim of Pinjar didn't immediately translate to roles being offered to Manoj. Despite delivering a powerful performance, he remained unemployed for months after the film's release and was mostly offered villainous roles. While a few projects came his way, none truly stood out, until Prakash Jha's Raajneeti (2010) happened. However, being a multi-starrer, the film's success wasn't solely credited to Manoj, with much of the spotlight falling on Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif.
If Satya catapulted Manoj Bajpayee to fame, Anurag Kashyap's Gangs of Wasseypur brought him back to that very peak. Anurag – who had penned Satya, Shool, and Kaun, the very films that helped establish Manoj in the industry – had a fallout with the actor, and the two stopped speaking for years. But one night, around 10 pm., Anurag called Manoj, choosing to bury the hatchet and offer him the role of Sardar Khan, a part that would not only resurrect Manoj's career but also redefine modern Bollywood and the portrayal of gangsters in Hindi cinema, much like what Bhiku Mhatre had done in the late '90s.
Aligarh (2016)
Manoj Bajpayee refuses to be typecast, he keeps surprising audiences with every role. After the success of Gangs of Wasseypur, he appeared in several films, but it was his restrained, deeply moving and pathbreaking performance in Hansal Mehta's Aligarh that left a lasting impact.
Much like Gangs, Aligarh also marked a reunion, this time with director Hansal Mehta, with whom Manoj had stopped speaking after the box office failure of Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar. 'We didn't talk to each other for six years. Our relationship was so strained that if we ever crossed paths, we would look the other way,' Hansal admitted. Their collaboration was rekindled with Aligarh.
The film remains one of Manoj's finest performances. He portrayed Dr. Shrinivas Ramchandra Siras, a homosexual professor at Aligarh Muslim University who was harassed for his sexuality. According to Manoj's biography, his performance moved his theatre guru Barry John to tears who himself had faced harassment. The excerpts of the book read, 'Barry himself is a part of the marginalised community and the film probably brought out the pain and indifference he had been facing all his life.'
The Family Man (2019)
While Manoj Bajpayee has long been a critics' darling, he truly captured the imagination of a younger audience with his streaming debut, The Family Man. At a time when the OTT space in India was just beginning to take shape, Manoj took a leap of faith — and nailed it. The decision wasn't easy. His wife, Shabana Raza, was initially against the idea of him starring in what she perceived as a 'serial.' But Manoj had the foresight to recognize that streaming was going to be the next big thing.
He once recalled, 'Shabana was not happy with me working on OTT. I convinced her how it was different. She questioned if it was about money, and why do I need to jeopardize my careerShe probably didn't realize the strength of OTT till she watched the first season.'
Manoj Bajpayee brought his signature depth and spontaneity to The Family Man, often improvising on set and helping make it one of the biggest shows on the streaming platform. Lauding his commitment, the show's creators Raj and DK shared, 'He can be seen cracking jokes with others on the sets. The director would wonder if he is even prepared, but the first take itself reveals how over-prepared he is.' T.' With The Family Man 2 becoming an even bigger success, Manoj not only cracked the streaming space – he truly owned it.