National Award winning actor Manoj Bajpayee, known for his serious acting and outspoken style in the Hindi cinema world, has made the biggest and sharpest attack so far on the internal environment of the film industry. During an exclusive interview, Bajpayee completely rejected the claims of brotherhood prevalent in Bollywood, calling it 'nonsense' and merely an 'illusion'. This veteran artiste, who has been active in the world of acting for more than three decades, said that no one is related to anyone in this industry, nor is anyone happy at heart after seeing anyone's progress or success. This explosive statement of his has once again raised serious questions on the internal structure of Bollywood, camp culture and mutual relations between the artists.
Manoj Bajpayee attacked the established narrative of Bollywood in which it is often claimed that 'Hindi film industry is one big family'. He said that despite working for long hours, he never felt like a real part of this industry. In Bajpayee's words, “The industry is not a family or a community; it is the biggest illusion. Here everyone has their own office and everyone is working only for their own business interests. No director considers another director better than himself and no production house likes to see another banner making more profits. Even if someone likes someone's film, no one bothers to call and praise him honestly.”
Reliving old memories during the interview, Manoj Bajpayee said that in the earlier times, there used to be an atmosphere of natural bonding and friendly conversation between the actors on the shooting sets. During shooting breaks or after work was over in the evening, the actors would sit together, gossip about the joys and sorrows and acting. But in today's modern era, 'vanity van culture' and social media have replaced human relationships. Now, as soon as the shooting is over, each artist goes into his or her own vanity van and gets lost in the virtual world of the mobile phone. Expressing concern over the lack of equality and equal treatment on the set, he said that it is very important to have an equal environment and better communication for everyone at every level.
Giving realistic advice to new artists and outsiders struggling in the film industry, Manoj Bajpayee said that one has to fight one's battle alone in this field. He made it clear that no one will come forward to help you here and if help ever comes, you should just consider it a good day and move ahead. He said, “I go to the set, do my work sincerely, take my money and return to my home without any extra attachment. If people are praising or criticizing me, I keep a distance from both.” According to Bajpayee, discipline and mental strength are the biggest weapons of an artist to face the adversities and challenges in his career.