Manoj Bajpai

Biography

Manoj Bajpai, a passionate lover of theatre,full of fury and raw energy, hails from Bilwa in Bihar.Manoj Bajpai was born on April 3rd.He has earned his acting credentials doing theatre(He was rejected thrice by the National School of Drama) and is the actor who is known for his acting sensibilities.

Manoj's ambitions and dreams to make his place under the arc lamps drove him from a sleepy town in Bihar to work his way up from TV roles to small character roles in films like Bandit Queen. Pooja Bhatt spotted him for her film 'Tamanna' where again he went unnoticed. Even after his first few films, Manoj was not that a recognized actor as far as the audiences were concerned. And then Satya happened and Manoj became synonymous with just one name Bhiku Mhatre.

Being a stickler for variety Manoj has always dug the roles that offer him the scope to convey myriad emotions. He showed his deft hand at comedy in Hansal Mehta's dark comedy Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar and his subtle and resisted performance in Zubeidaa just adds another feather to his cap. This man has the dream of working with Martin Scorcese and with the kind of adulation and fanfare he has now, the day should not far enough.

Stepped into Bollywood with Govind Nihalani?s Drohkaal (1994) and then as Man Singh in Shekhar Kapur?s Bandit Queen (1994). He has worked in Dastak (1996); Mahesh Bhatt?s Tamanna (1997) and Ram Gopal Verma?s Daud (1997).

It was Ram Gopal Verma?s Satya (1998) that won him recognition, when he played the underworld don Bhiku Mhatre. He won several awards including Filmfare Award Best Actor ? Critics Choice and National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor.

In Ram Gopal Verma?s Kaun, a suspense thriller, he starred with Urmila Matondkar. He was seen as Inspector Samar Pratap Singh in E.Nivas? Shool (1999) about politics, winning a second Filmfare Award Best Actor ? Critics Choice.

In Fiza (2000) he played Murad Khan, the leader of a terrorist group. The movie didn?t do well commercially but earned appreciation from critics. He did a turnaround from his usual roles in Shyam Benegal?s Zubeidaa (2001) with Karishma Kapoor and Rekha, as Maharaja Vijayendra Singh who falls in love with and marries a divorcee Zubeidaa who is na?ve, romantic and possessive around his first wife Rajmata Mandira Devi.

Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra?s Aks (2001) saw him as a killer Raghavan. In Ram Gopal Verma?s Road (2002) with Antara Mali and Vivek Oberoi his character again wore a dark shade. His other movies were Pinjar (2003) with Urmila Matondkar for which he won the National Film Special Jury Award; J.P Dutta?s LOC Kargil (2003); as Preity Zinta?s fianc? Raza in Yash Chopra?s Veer Zaara (2004); Dharmesh Darshan?s Bewafaa (2005) and Fareb (2005) with Shilpa Shetty and Shamita Shetty.

Manoj Bajpai acted in a Telugu movie Happy (2006) with Genelia D?Souza and Allu Arjun; as a prisoner of war in 1971 (2007) and Swami (2007). He was also seen in Dus Kahaniyan, an anthology of ten films in 2007.

Money Hai Tho Honey Hai (2008) didn?t work at the box office. Acid Factory is due to be released in 2009.

He is married to actress Neha who worked in movies like Kareeb and Fiza.