Kavita Awaasthi (HINDUSTAN TIMES; August 12, 2020)

“Sab ko sahan karna hi padta hai in every field. You don’t get anything without mehnat. Sure, there must be favouritism, in some places, but I never paid attention to it. My goal was to prove myself as an actor,” says senior actor Manoj Joshi, commenting on the surging debates in the industry about insider-outsider and favouritism.

“We have a number of actors who have made a mark in the film industry from Sanjeev Kumar, Nana Patekar, Irrfan Khan, Paresh Rawal, Anupam Kher to Manoj Bajpayee. Maybe, some of them might not have reached the highest level or earned as much as some other actors, but that is an individual experience. It is also about your personal equation. As for talent, I feel it doesn’t go unnoticed in the industry. It is always appreciated. One has to keep doing their best.”

Praising actor Kangana Ranaut for her talent and success, Joshi cites her as someone who made a mark in the industry on her own. “She is a prime example of an outsider, who worked hard and made her way up the ladder. She didn’t become a popular name on day one. It took her time and effort and a number of roles to be called one of the talented and successful actors of our country today,” he says.

The Padma Shri actor, who has given acclaimed performances in Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati films, says he never paid attention to things like which director didn’t cast him. “Sab kuch apne hisaab se hota hai. Filmmaking is a business. Jaise haath mein laathi, uski bhains. Today, casting directors, too, choose actors who they feel work for the film. If God has given me talent, and I have honed it and worked patiently, then I will see results. Every person has to go through these experiences. I have always worked diligently and my goal was to only do good roles and prove myself as an actor,” he signs off.