The man behind some of the best movies in India thinks that Independent Cinema in India is almost dead and losing relevance. Manoj Bajpayee, while speaking at IFFI in Goa, shared why he doesn’t like doing mainstream films and why he seeks out new directors and better scripts. The actor, who has starred in several critically acclaimed slate of films, opined that even OTT platforms have stopped supporting Indepent cinema.
He said, “When I was doing Gangs Of Wasseypur, I realised that this industry is not going to give me what I want. They weren’t writing the scripts that I wanted and not giving opportunities to the talents who have it in them. That’s when I realised I have to look for my own directors and scripts or you just wait for eternity for that one script to happen to you, and I was desperate!”
He shared why he personally seeks out for directors and said, “That’s when I started watching a lot of short films on YouTube. In that search, I found too many people. That’s when I went for the new filmmakers – Dipesh Jain (Gali Guleiyan), Kanu Bahl (Despatch). I knew I had too much to express but there was nobody in the industry who was able to give me that.” He also shared why he doesn’t like commercial films and said, “As an actor, mainstream films is not something I prefer, it puts you into one kind of genre.”
Further speaking out the state of Independent films in India, Bajpayee opined, “We are at our lowest right now. We thought there is a strong platform for independent cinema, but now even the OTT platforms have stopped welcoming that kind of creativity,” said Bajpayee, who believes it is just time before indie cinema gets back on the crest. “We are living in a time of uncertainty. It kind of reflects everywhere. One day, independent cinema will rise again. Independent cinemas are the only kind of cinema that is staying true to the definition of cinema as an art.”
