Manoj Bajpayee's interview justifying 'Kabir Singh' goes viral after 'Animal' release

Manoj Bajpayee

Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Animal directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga hit the theatres on December 1. While the film heavy on violence has been breaking records at the box office, there is an active conversation and debate regarding the film and its politics on social media. Just like Vanga's previous film 'Kabir Singh', 'Animal' has also triggered some people with its violence and gender politics. Amid this, an old interview of actor Manoj Bajpayee sharing his thoughts on morality and social responsibility in cinema has gone viral.

In an interview with Mid-day, Manoj was answering a question on social responsibility of filmmakers. "Lately , I have been seeing that creative work is being burdened by people's morality. When it is becoming jingoistic and it is a good film , you don't point fingers at it. There is a film, I don't want to name, it's a violent love story like Kabir Singh. There are 50 films that have been made in the past where the hero has not been nice to the heroine. When I am doing a kissing scene, I am not getting Manoj Bajpayee's morality into the scene; I am playing the character. It is a character which is there in the script, it is part of the society. If I am convinced with the realism of the script and the scene, I will go ahead and put all my believability into the scene."

"Similarly, Kabir Singh is a part of the society for me. You want to take it the way it is, fine. You don't want to take it the way it is, don't watch it. The moment you try to load it, burden it with your own morality, then we should also be ready for all other segments of the society who are going to point fingers and try to mutilate other content which will not suit their morality. You shut down one Kabir Singh there will be 50 other films you will agree with and other segments will not agree with it. They will burden with their own morality and start censoring it. They will start pelting stones at the theatres because the films they don't agree with is being shown. In a society where films are made to be shown to everybody, you can be critical of it. You can criticise the film in your writing but you cannot be of the opinion that you should not make it. It is a bad precedent and this is what we are against," he added.

The actor further said, "I personally do a film if I am excited by the script, if the film is nice, compact, engaging, entertaining and informing. If there is social cause people will watch and go home. Films don't change society, they change your hairstyle." He cited examples of superstars Amitabh Bachchan and Rajesh Khanna who have done several successful commercial films but largely created impact with their style than films.