Manoj Bajpayee Shares Incident Of Vidhu Vinod Chopra Biting His Wife’s Hand: 'Because She Was So New...'

Manoj Bajpayee recently shed light on the reason behind his wife Shabana Raza’s absence from films.

Shabana Raza made her debut in 1998 with ‘Kareeb’ opposite Bobby Deol.

Source : Instagram/@bajpayee.manoj

Shabana Raza, known professionally as Neha Bajpai, was a prominent actress until she stepped away from films in 2009. However, after appearing in ‘Acid Factory’ in 2009, she gradually distanced herself from the limelight. By then, she was married to Manoj Bajpayee, marking the beginning of her new chapter away from the film industry.

Manoj Bajpayee on why his wife quit Bollywood

After nearly 15 years away from acting, Manoj Bajpayee recently shed light on the reason behind his wife Shabana Raza’s absence from films. In an interview with Mid-Day, the acclaimed actor opened up about her decision to step back from the industry and focus on other aspects of life. 

“She didn’t quit films, she stopped getting work for some reason. Too many politics here and there. She is also an outsider and didn’t have any mentor,” he said.

In the same interview, Manoj Bajpayee recounted a surprising incident when filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra playfully bit his wife Shabana Raza’s hand.

He said, “Because Shabana didn’t have any film training of that sort, in the song she was raising a different hand altogether. In the scene, she was supposed to raise her left hand, but she would end up raising her right hand… so for her to raise the left hand without forgetting, Vidhu bit her there. Nobody can do this with me.”

“Because she was so new, she didn’t know if the action was appropriate. She thought this is the way how filmmakers behave. She must have thought they are all mad genuises, they are capable of doing anything they want,” he added.

About Shabana Raza

Shabana Raza made her debut in 1998 with ‘Kareeb’ opposite Bobby Deol. The film, however, didn’t work at the box office. Over the years, she worked alongside Hrithik Roshan in ‘Fiza’ and Ajay Devgn in ‘Pyaar Ki Jeet’.