Manoj Bajpayee has been on both sides of the fence - as a police officer and as a criminal. He has played the flamboyant goon 'Mumbai Ka King' Bhiku Mhatre in Satya and dreaded gangster Sardar Khan in Gangs of Wasseypur. He was equally believable when he donned the khakhi as the honest Inspector Samar Pratap Singh in Shool and CBI officer Wasim Khan who is outsmarted by conmen in Special 26.
Manoj Bajpayee has once again put on the police uniform for his latest outing Inspector Zende, set to start streaming on Netflix from September 5.
The quirky crime drama, directed by debutant Chinmay Mandlekar, is based on real-life former Mumbai cop Madhukar B Zende who caught notorious serial killer Charles Sobhraj twice. In Inspector Zende, Jim Sarbh plays Carl Bhojraj, a character which draws inspiration from Charles Sobhraj.
Of all the cop roles that he has played till date, Manoj Bajpayee said Inspector Zende is completely different.
"Whatever you have seen till now, in all the police roles, whether it was played by me or anyone else, this guy (Inspector Zende) is 180 degree different. He's a middle-class person completely in love with his wife even after all those years, he has two little children.
"He's dedicated to the job that he's been given to do. He's a team player, he doesn't believe that anything can be achieved without his team. He treats them equally. He's far more inclusive than any other role I have played till now," the actor told NDTV in an interview.
Is there a different challenge when playing a real-life character that too a cop?
Manoj Bajpayee said what worked for him was the fact that the real Inspector Zende is not really exposed to the spotlight.
"There can be a challenge when you're playing Gandhi because people have seen many of his videos. For them to really see someone else play that role... That actor has to come very close to him in terms of the physicality.
"But people who are not that much known to the audience there you have the responsibility of getting the idea and essence of the person. What actually made him tick, the challenges, the conflicts he faced in his life. You are not really forced to imitate him. You immerse yourself into the idea of the person that is available," he added.
From Black Friday, Ab Tak Chhappan, to Shootout at Lokhandwala, there have been many films based on real-life police officers.
Asked why real-life cops make for an interesting source material for screen, Manoj Bajpayee said, "Because they are believable, first of all. You actually know that there is a guy who has done it in reality. It has happened. You also relate to the character on screen far, far more because it's true."
