Manoj Bajpayee Reveals Ram Gopal Varma Lied To Him About The Lead Role in Satya; Says 'I was Heartbroken...'

Manoj Bajpayee, who kickstarted his career with his role in Ram Gopal Varma’s Satya, shared that he felt initial disappointment when the filmmaker failed to fulfil his promise of offering him the lead role in the film. Manoj also went on to reveal that Varma had been actively searching for him for five years after being impressed by his performance in Bandit Queen.

During an episode of Cyrus Says, Manoj revealed, “A guy told me that Ramu (RGV) is looking for a main henchman for the Paresh Rawal gang. So I went. It was my turn to meet Ramu and I went inside and he told me to sit. He asked ‘So what have you done?’ I said ‘I have done a film with Mahesh Bhatt, played a significant part, and I have done Bandit Queen. That rang the bell for him because he was a big big fan of Bandit Queen. He has seen the film more than 3-4 times.”

According to the actor, RGV couldn’t believe that he portrayed the character Maan Singh in the film. Recounting the incident, Manoj shared, “He asked which role I have done and I said Maan Singh. He literally sprung up from his seat and said ‘you don’t look like Maan Singh you are too young and good looking for Maan Singh.’.”

It was on the same day that RGV approached Manoj and informed him about the film Satya, urging him not to take up the film Daud. He said, “I can’t believe I’ve been searching for you for five years. Please don’t do this film. I’ve been looking for you all these years, and I have a lead role for you. I want to reserve you for that; don’t commit to anything else.” After completing Daud, RGV finalised the script for Satya. However, when Manoj received a call regarding the film, he was offered a supporting role instead of the lead, which left him rather disheartened.

Manoj recalled, “He called me and said I want you to play the second guy. I was heartbroken. He lied. I felt what is the use? He said come over. I went to his house and he said you know that I can cast anyone for the lead but I need someone who has a great personality, great presence in front of the camera for Biku Mhatre.” Manoj went on to receive much applause for his role.