Published By: Sayan Paul

Birthday Special: Manoj Bajpayee Almost Rejected 'The Family Man' - Know Why

The National Award-winning actor plays Srikant Tiwari, a middle-class man secretly working as an intelligence officer, in 'The Family Man'.

What Hathiram Chaudhary in 'Paatal Lok' is for Jaideep Ahlawat, what Kaleen Bhaiya in 'Mirzapur' is for Pankaj Tripathi — that’s exactly what Srikant Tiwari in 'The Family Man' is for Manoj Bajpayee. These actors have been around for decades, ruling the world of niche cinema long before streaming platforms were even a thing. Critics loved them, and film festivals applauded — but the masses just kept calling them "underrated". Then these iconic roles came along and turned the table. After 'The Family Man' happened, Manoj Bajpayee rose to the mainstream hero status. From “Oh, he is that serious actor, na?” to “Arre, Srikant Tiwari is too funny yaar!”, it was a total rebranding — minus the PR team.

Now let’s talk about Srikant — the man is basically James Bond with job stress, parenting guilt, and borderline hypertension. One moment he is defusing national threats, and the next, he is getting scolded by his wife for skipping counseling and by his kids' teacher for missing PTA meetings. Bajpayee plays him with such effortless brilliance that you start to wonder — is this performance, or did they just follow a real middle-class dad (and world-class spy) around with a camera? From muttering excuses at work to delivering iconic one-liners (let’s not even try describing that car scene), Srikant is a walking contradiction — and Bajpayee's performance is a masterclass in acting. Funny, flawed, fierce — he may not be your typical hero, but he is definitely your favorite one.

 

(Credit: Chhota Memes Bada Dhamaka)

Well, one of India's finest actors, Bajpayee celebrates his 56th birthday today. On this occasion, we share an interesting fact (regarding 'The Family Man', of course) about him that you probably didn't know.

Manoj Bajpayee Almost Rejected 'The Family Man' – Here’s the Full Masaledaar Story

Yes, you read that right. The man who made Srikant a household name almost didn’t take up the role. Turns out, when Bajpayee was first approached for 'The Family Man', his response was basically: “Thanks, but no thanks.” Why? Because the world of OTT didn’t exactly have him doing cartwheels in excitement.

“I was pretty afraid,” he admitted while speaking at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI). And no, he wasn’t afraid of stunts or explosions. He was afraid of templates—you know, those now-too-familiar recipes of OTT shows: blood, gore, and more blood. “I was very clear about what I never wanted to be part of,” he said. Fair enough, we’d also be skeptical if someone offered us yet another role where the script read like Tarantino fan fiction.

 

(Credit: manoj bajpayee)

But wait, the drama doesn’t end there. Apparently, when casting director Mukesh Chhabra called him up and said, “Raj and DK want to meet you,” Bajpayee almost rolled his eyes. “I was like, yaar, I have seen these web series; it’s all about s**, violence, and thrill. I may not be interested,” he confessed. We can practically picture him sipping tea and sighing dramatically.

Now, Kahaani Mein Twist

Well, Akshaye Khanna was rumored to be doing the show. Now, most actors would say, “So what? Happens all the time.” But Bajpayee? Nope. He straight-up said, “If that’s true, even if I like the project, I will not do it.”

Thankfully, Mukesh Chhabra didn’t give up. He clarified that Akshaye wasn’t doing it, dragged Bajpayee (not literally, we think) to meet Raj and DK, and in just minutes of narration, Bajpayee was hooked.

“With the 20 minutes of narration they gave, I was totally sold,” he said. That’s all it took. A little chat and suddenly he could see himself as Srikant. “I could see the kind of freedom I would get to play it the way I want to.” And thank God for that.

(Credit: Prime Video India)

Becoming Srikant Tiwari: No Research Needed, Just Look Around

So how did he prepare for this complex, layered character who flips between being a middle-class husband/father and a world-class intelligence officer? Did he shadow spies? Go method and disappear for weeks? Nah! He just looked around. “We are the middle class. We don’t need to draw a reference—we are the reference,” he said.

 

(Credit: IANS)

“I have to look at my father’s life, my brother’s life, or my neighbor’s life, and Srikant Tiwari is everywhere,” he explained in that discussion. Honestly, that’s poetry. Srikant is your uncle who buys discounted soap in bulk. He is the guy balancing office deadlines with school PTMs. He is you, he is me, he is the Indian everyman—except, well, with a side gig of saving the country.

(Credit: Prime Video India)

“They are the people who are traveling in the trains every day at five o’clock in the morning, reaching their offices and then going back to their respective homes.” Now imagine the sound of millions of middle-class Indians collectively saying “Uss, bhai, uss!"

So yes, the man who almost walked away from 'The Family Man' ended up becoming its heart. And thank God he did. Because let’s be honest—without Manoj Bajpayee as Srikant, the show would’ve just been 'The Family Meh'.

And yes, Happy Birthday, Bajpayee Ji!