Manoj Bajpayee Reveals Why He Rejected Chunnilal’s Role In Devdas: ‘Meri Toh Hamesha Se Ichchha Thi…’

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s directorial Devdas is considered one of the iconic films. Starring Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Madhuri Dixit and Jackie Shroff, the romantic drama still enjoys a huge fan following. Well, recently in a conversation Manoj Bajpayee revealed that he was offered Chunnilal’s role in the film but he declined saying that he wanted to play Devdas. However, it was later offered to Jackie Shroff.

In an interview with Sushant Sinha, Manoj was asked if he had ever rejected a movie that went on to become a big hit. He said, “Yes, I was offered Jackie Shroff’s role in Devdas, but I immediately said no. I told Sanjay, ‘Sanjay, yaar, meri toh hamesha se ichchha thi Devdas karne ki (I always wanted to play Devdas). That film became a superhit, but I have regrets about letting it go. I’d wanted to play Devdas since my theatre days, ever since I’d watched Dilip Kumar’s film, or read the book. But I never felt bad.”

Devdas (2002), a Bhansali directorial, stands as a testament to his success in adapting well-known stories. Based on Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s 1917 novel of the same name, the film starred Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, and Madhuri Dixit. Despite a prior adaptation by Bimal Roy in 1955, Bhansali’s version emerged as the highest-grossing movie of the year, showcasing the director’s ability to reimagine classic narratives.

Earlier in an interview with Bollywood Bubble, Manoj had said that SRK was the one who took him to a discotheque for the first time. “He (SRK) was the only one who used to come in Maruti Van. In those days a Maruti Van, red colour, I still remember. He is the one who has taken me to a discotheque for the first time in Taj in Delhi. I mean we were very young, we had kind of just gotten out of our adolescent age and we met. He was part of Barry John’s group for some time,” the actor said.

On work front, Manoj will be soon seen in Family Man season 3 series. The actor recently shared a major update about the third season of The Family Man. The actor will reprise his role as Srikant Tiwari, who is a ‘middle-class guy and a world class spy’. Srikant will expertly confront the looming threat to national security, while balancing the demands of family life and desperately working to mend his relationship with his wife in the new season.