Even before Manoj Bajpayee’s Jugnuma opened to rave reviews, it found support from filmmakers across the country. While Anurag Kashyap and Guneet Monga Kapoor presented Raam Reddy’s directorial venture, several South filmmakers, including Vetrimaaran, Lijo Jose Pellissery, and Nag Ashwin, unveiled the film’s trailer on social media. When we caught up with Bajpayee before the movie’s release, he expressed gratitude for his peers’ support.

“All of them are friends. Whenever I’m in Chennai, I meet Vetri. I admire his films. There is also [Thiagarajan] Kumararaja from Chennai, and so many makers from Karnataka and Kerala. We connect because our choices are the same,” he said, giving a special shoutout to Kashyap for bringing the filmmakers together to rally behind Jugnuma.

In the last few years, the lines between Hindi and regional cinema have blurred with many Bollywood actors teaming up with South filmmakers. Can we expect a collaboration between Bajpayee and these filmmakers, considering the actor’s cinematic sensibilities match with them?

“Their only complaint is that I don’t know the language. Otherwise, we are all mutual admirers. In fact, I would love to associate myself with Vetri,” said the actor.