Mumbai — Veteran actor Manoj Bajpayee recounted on Shekhar Suman’s talk show Shekhar Tonite how late filmmaker Yash Chopra personally sought him out for a cameo in the 2004 romantic drama Veer‑Zaara — and paid him what he “charged as a lead actor” for the brief role.
Bajpayee said Yash ji called after watching Bajpayee’s work in Pinjar and told him, “There’s a cameo role in my film. Would you do it?” The actor added that he accepted without even wanting to hear the full script, because he wanted to be directed by Chopra. He asked only for a one‑line description of the story and character and agreed to come prepared; Aditya Chopra later narrated the scene to him.
Recalling the conversation, Bajpayee said he asked for a larger role next time, to which Yash Chopra replied candidly that he did not make films for actors like Bajpayee, and that Bajpayee should simply perform the cameo well. Bajpayee offered to work without a fee, but said Chopra insisted and paid him the same amount he normally received for lead roles.
The anecdote came as Bajpayee reflected on his career choices after his breakthrough in Satya, noting that he had turned down lucrative villain roles to avoid typecasting. He explained that roles he was passionate about often paid modestly, but he never regretted prioritising meaningful work.
Veer‑Zaara, directed by Yash Chopra, starred Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta and Rani Mukerji, and featured a strong supporting cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Divya Dutta, Manoj Bajpayee, Boman Irani, Anupam Kher and Kirron Kher.
Bajpayee was recently seen in Chinmay Mandlekar’s financial drama Governor: The Silent Saviour, which deals with India’s 1991 balance‑of‑payments crisis.
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