Manoj Bajpayee to front American director Ben Rekhi’s upcoming movie

Manoj Bajpayee and Rana Daggubati. Pics/Instagram

After Pinjar's (2003) release, Manoj Bajpayee was set to star in an international film with actor Frank Langella, but the project didn't materialise. Over two decades on, Bajpayee has added an Indo-American movie to his filmography. mid-day has learnt that the actor has fronted a yet-untitled Hindi social drama, directed by American filmmaker Ben Rekhi, who previously helmed The Ashram (2018) and Watch List (2019). Interestingly, the film is produced by Rana Daggubati, marking his first collaboration with Bajpayee.

Ben Rekhi

Daggubati, through his production house Spirit Media, has been throwing his might behind promising movies, Payal Kapadia's All We Imagine as Light (2024) being one example. When he crossed paths with Bajpayee in recent years, thanks to their involvement in Discovery+ shows, the actor-producer felt the latter would be the right fit for a social drama he was developing. A source reveals, "Ben has written the story. Manoj plays a common man whose family lands in trouble, leading him to fight for a cause. Through the family's journey, the story highlights a social issue. The actor is known to be selective about his scripts. When Rana and Ben narrated the story to him, he said yes immediately."

The film was shot in Mumbai last year. "Some theatre actors from Mumbai are part of the cast. It's a collaboration between Rana's banner and a Los Angeles-based production house. The makers are keeping it under wraps until they finalise the release plans," adds the source.