“This whole ‘insiders-outsiders' talk is futile… nobody should feel privileged just because they are the son or daughter of so and so.” – Manoj Bajpayee

One of Bollywood’s most versatile actors, Manoj Bajpayee has received many accolades and adulation in his career spanning 27 years. He is multi-talented, passionate and has a knack of understanding his craft so well that he invariably gets into the skin of the character he plays. In a candid interview with Nikita Nikhil, Manoj talks about his film ‘Silence Can You Hear It?’, the future of cinema and the whole insiders v/s outsiders debate. Read on…

- Nikita Nikhil

You are extremely versatile and can essay various shades with ease. In fact, you ace every role that you play. Is there a particular secret mantra behind it?

I don’t know if there is a secret mantra for this, but one thing I do know is that I don’t judge any genre or insist I should play just characters of just one particular genre. I believe that an actor should understand each and every genre and the requirements of it. One has to be ready with the craft and the skill and the passion to do justice to each and every role spanning any genre. So that’s what I follow and that keeps me interested all the time. If I do two or three independent films in a row, I want to get out and do something else. So I just do something middle of the stream or mainstream to keep myself fresh and interested in acting all the time. …And all these different directors keep me on my toes as they have different opinions about acting, different definitions of cinema …and I love it! I love to meet their expectations with my own craft and understand it.

Your film ‘Silence… Can You Hear It?’ is creating quite a buzz. What inspired you to select this film?

This is a murder mystery - something that I have never done before. I was on the lookout for one with a well-written script. Aban Deohans is a very old friend of mine and her husband K.D. (Kiran Deohans) too. I have known them since the time I started working for the film Aks. K.D. was the cinematographer.