'I can’t do films for money': Manoj

Manoj Bajpayee ��� yes that���s the way he spells his surname and not Bajpai or Vajpayee ��� is once again raring to go, despite the recent box office failure Acid Factory.
When BT met him, he looked different from his usual self ��� sporting a handle-bar moustache. He was ready to put to good use everything he knew about politics. No he���s not joining any political party, at least not yet, but is doing Prakash Jha���s political potboiler, Rajniti.���Don���t forget I���m a Bihari and discussing politics is my favourite pastime. I don���t know whether I would be a good politician or not but I can definitely be a good critic,��� he smiled.
But the moustache was not for this film. ���I grew it for Madhur Bhandarkar���s Jail,��� said the actor. In Jail, he plays one of the inmates, but in reality, he���s never got onto the wrong side of the law. ���I belonged to the ���good samaritan��� gang in Delhi. We protected the mohalla girls from the bad boys,��� said the proud Bihari of his days spent in Delhi as a young boy. But those are days gone by, just like the bad phase in his life. He was bedridden for over a year due to a shoulder injury. But Manoj has put all that behind him, just like his films that didn���t do well at the box office. ���I do feel bad when my films don���t do well. But then, look at the films that have won national recognition. My film 1971 which was made in 2007, won the National Film Award for the Best Feature Film in Hindi this year. I knew it from the very beginning that it was a winner, though it didn���t do well at the BO because of bad marketing,��� he rued.
These days, every actor worth his salt is making big moolah on the small screen, but Manoj has a different take on the idiot box. ���Call it mistakes of my personality, but I just can���t do anything for the sake of money. It���s the same with films. I can host a show on TV but won���t ever be able to participate in any of them as a contestant. I���m just too shy and weak. I really appreciate people who have the guts to allow the world to peep into their private lives. As Manoj Bajpayee, I can���t bring out my feelings in front of the camera, but as an actor, I won���t disappoint you.��� No director can refute that!
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