Manoj Bajpayee: ‘In 20 days, I will start the show’

Manoj Bajpayee

For the past three years, one question has persistently followed Manoj Bajpayee: ‘When are you starting The Family Man's third season?' The actor finally has an answer. "In another 20 days, I will start the show," he smiles.

That should satisfy fans who have been eager to see more of their favourite spy Srikant Tiwari after the second season streamed in 2021. It's not the fans alone; Bajpayee says he too misses the character and the universe created by Raj-DK. But he is equally aware of the audiences' high expectations from the series after the past two seasons' runaway success. That makes him work harder on the show. "One has to keep in mind that when you are getting into it again, it's new ground and you can't take it for granted. You have to find a new process. You have to involve yourself in the preparation. My preparation is immense, it's never linear."

A still from the series

It's easy to be swept away by the frenzy around the much-loved spy thriller. But Bajpayee and the creators stick to the golden rule: take an edition on floors only when you have a powerful script in place. He states, "The Family Man has now become a kind of a cult series. Fans want to see more of it. If the response is massive, go with the audience and think of a great script for the next one. But without a [good] script in place, don't start the next instalment. The learning is don't try to rush it. Write a great script, go through it again and again, and when you are truly satisfied, only then think of making the next part."

The actor applied the same learning to his next release, Silence 2: The Night Owl Bar Shootout. As he reprises his role of ACP Avinash Varma in the sequel to Silence: Can You Hear It? (2021), he says the positive response to the first film encouraged director Aban Bharucha Deohans to take the story forward. "The [makers] got a massive response. The audience wanted this franchise to go on for some time. When I saw fan messages, I realised that a film can generate so much curiosity on streaming platforms that fans want to witness it again because they aren't satisfied with only one film."