Showing posts with label Inspector Zende. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Inspector Zende. Show all posts
I’m a struggler and I have no shame about it-Manoj Bajpayee
9:56 AM
Akash Bhatnagar (HINDUSTAN TIMES; October 17, 2025)
Having been a part of the industry for over three decades, Manoj Bajpayee has dabbled in various genres. Just last month, the actor featured in the indie film Jugnuma and the satirical comedy Inspector Zende. Up next, he is set to reprise his role in the acclaimed series The Family Man 3. However, there is still one genre he hasn’t yet explored and is eager to step into.
“I would love to act in a VFX-heavy film because I really don’t know how to act in front of a green screen. Many people tell me it’s quite a challenge and requires a specific technique. But I’ve never done it, apart from using that for anchoring or hosting a documentary. So, it would be very interesting,” the 56-year-old shares.
Filmmaker Om Raut, who produced Inspector Zende, is known for making such technologically-driven films, with Tanhaji: The Unsung Hero (2020) and Adipurush (2023) in his repertoire. Recently, he had mentioned wanting to direct Manoj in a film, and the actor himself is looking forward to it.
“I used to go and sit next to him during the shoot and ask for a role in his next. I’m a struggler and I have no shame about it. I’m always hustling for a great role. He’s been telling me [that he wants to direct me] but he can always change his mind since he lives in Bandra and has many actors in his neighbourhood,” he laughs.
With The Family Man 3, Manoj returns to play the secret agent, Srikant Tiwari. This is just one of the many roles he’s played as an officer of the law, the most recent being Inspector Zende. Ask what pulls him towards such roles and he says, “It’s not that I want to play a man in a uniform. It’s always about who’s wearing the uniform, what he’s doing, where he’s coming from, his upbringing and the factors that have made him who he is. Such aspects interest me much more than the exterior facets.”
Ask anyone who won a National Film Award last year, and most won’t remember-Manoj Bajpayee
4:11 PM
Sonal Kalra (HINDUSTAN TIMES; September 6, 2025)
Actor Manoj Bajpayee is making waves for his trademark knack of playing middle-class men and turning the ordinary into unforgettable stories in his latest release, Inspector Zende. Now, he is reuniting with filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma after 27 years.
Manoj, 56, joined Sonal Kalra, Chief Managing Editor, Entertainment and Lifestyle, in this week’s episode of The Right Angle with Sonal Kalra, and opened up on the money struggles of actors across mediums, and how passion, not validation, drives him.
If someone wants to be the next Manoj Bajpayee, what do they need to do?
Very difficult shoes to wear (laughs). I’ve been crazy about acting since I was 10 and I still am. I’m not giving any gyaan, nobody wants that. [But] today, too, I feel every great role should only come to me and no one else. If you want to buy a nice car, live in a nice house, wear good clothes, or tour the world through your acting, don’t go for it. The ratio of people who achieve that is very low. The passion for your work must always be present. If you want to act because without it you might die, then come.
You’ve received many awards. Have you ever felt bad about losing one?
That’s very difficult to judge. Ask anyone who won a National Film Award last year, and most won’t remember. But they’ll remember Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai and Joram (both 2023) as great films, even though they didn’t get any National Awards. What matters to me is how great the films are and how proud I am of my work. Awards are for one evening; your work will be remembered. You can’t get an award to validate your work; if you are doing that, it’s a great injustice to yourself and your films.
OTT stars have the same fame as theatrical stars, but when will they be paid like them?
I never get paid (laughs). And nowadays, even those in theatres aren’t getting paid like they used to because of the risk and budget constraints. On OTT, I’ve been busy for seven years. The biggest advantages are out-of-the-box stories and actors getting respect, and writers and directors getting employed; it’s a win-win situation for all of us, including the platforms. Theatres are slowly making a comeback, but budgets are lower. I really want all mediums — films, OTT, and satellite — to do really well. If they do, there won’t be a monopoly, and that will only be good for filmmakers, actors and all creative departments.
Fans are excited about you reuniting with Ram Gopal Varma after 27 years. What was it like?
I’ve finished one schedule, and I am completely zapped. He is the real OG (laughs). This guy has not gone anywhere; he is going to be back, and how! Ramu’s ability to go beyond anybody’s imagination as a filmmaker, his courage, and his audaciousness have not changed! But he has become very inclusive. Unlike the Ramu I saw and experienced during Satya (1998), Shool (1999) and Kaun? (1999), this one is like a three-year-old kid in a candy store. And even today, he sits down with you and tells you what has gone wrong with him in all these years. The output so far is mind-blowing. A director like Ram Gopal Varma can always come back and throw you out of your alignment; he is that kind of talent.
Which of your roles is closest to your heart, discounting their commercial success?
I’ll be the last person to keep the commercial thing in mind. Very few films of mine have been theatrical hits (laughs). My own personal favourites are Gali Guleiyan (2017; Prime Video) and Budhia Singh (2016; Netflix). Of all the cop roles, Inspector Zende is the most chilled out and realistic. And Jugnuma; I’ve spent seven years on this film, and it is now about to release. It started filming before lockdown, and when we went back, the Delta variant of Covid hit. Somehow, we completed the film. It had a great festival run. That film is very close to me, like Inspector Zende.
The trailer of Inspector Zende looks very interesting. Tell us something about him.
Inspector Zende is a celebrated police officer in Maharashtra for some impossible tasks he accomplished, but the rest of India doesn’t really know him. (Producer) Om Raut’s father always wanted a film on him because he caught an international criminal. But as we researched, we realized his story couldn’t be told as a grim film because he’s such a chilled-out man. I’ve been told he never fired his pistol, yet solved incredible cases — releasing trapped police officers, rescuing people from the mafia. His life deserved this tribute.
Was the team concerned about humour diluting the seriousness of the role?
Nobody is trying to create a comedy here. But everything that will happen will compel you to laugh. Zende was a regular 48 or 49-year-old middle-class man with a team of lower-middle-class policemen. Before their Goa mission, nobody had ever been on a flight. In Goa, they had to blend in but the team doesn’t even have money, so they took an accountant to track expenses. That leads to a very comic thriller. None of us is trying to be funny, but the way things unfolded is very funny.
(Crisp) Movie Review: INSPECTOR ZENDE by FENIL SETA
10:22 PM
Inspector Zende, which was released today on Netflix, is inspired by true events. Usually, crime-based real stories are presented seriously on celluloid. But writer-director Chinmay D Mandlekar takes the Harishchandrachi Factory route. He narrates it with a lot of humour. The characters are well fleshed out and the film packs in a lot in 112 minutes. The finale is amusing. On the flipside, the songs are poor. Majorly, the antagonist doesn't seem as menacing; this goes against the film in a few scenes. Manoj Bajpayee enhances the humour quotient of the film, at times just through his mere expressions. Jim Sarbh is tailor-made for the part and delivers a suave performance. Sachin Khedekar lends able support. Girija Oak is lovely. From the cops, Bhalchandra Kadam (Patil) leaves the maximum mark. Harish Dudhade (Jacob) stands out because of a quirk in his character. All in all, Inspector Zende is a fun-filled and well-made flick.
My rating - *** ½ out of 5!
My rating - *** ½ out of 5!
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