Manoj Bajpayee says he felt offended, helpless when 'faceless, nameless' trolls attacked his wife and daughter over Ghooskhor Pandat row

Manoj Bajpayee's film Gajab Raat was earlier titled Ghooskhor Pandat. The original title generated quite a lot of controversy earlier this year.

Actor Manoj Bajpayee has said that he has developed a thick skin when it comes to criticism but he did get concerned and offended when people began dragging his family into the controversy surrounding the previous title of his film, Gajab Raat.

Manoj Bajpayee recalls trolling for Ghooskhor Pandat

Manoj Bajpayee in a still from Netflix's Gajab Raat, which resulted in FIRs and backlash.

The Netflix film, directed by Ritesh Shah, was originally announced by Netflix in February this year as Ghooskhor Pandat. The title triggered a social media backlash with several politicians and organisations calling it "casteist and offensive". The makers later changed the title.

But the makers and Manoj received a lot of online hate following the row. In a recent interview with PTI, Manoj recalled the time, saying, “You go ahead and assault me with the worst thing, I'll take it because I'm an actor. I've had a journey from rejection to everything (where) you are called all sorts of things. So you are thick-skinned. At the end of the day, I feel bad all those people, who are either very ignorant or have less knowledge about life. What really concerned me and offended me to no bits is when they started publishing the photo(s) of my family and saying things.”

“I am a person who is very easy (going) in life, I like to be happy and have fun all the time. But at the same time, when there is an urgency to save my near and dear ones, I'm very confrontational... But who could I confront because there are nameless people out there,” the actor said.

Eventually, the film was retitled Gajab Raat, with the first teaser releasing earlier this month. The film released on Netflix this Friday, October 23.

All about Gajab Raat

Directed by Ritesh Shah and produced by Neeraj Pandey's Friday Storytellers, Gajab Raat follows Ajay Nirvit, a cop whose act of compassion towards an injured woman draws him into a high-level conspiracy and a deadly game that unfolds over a single night.

Gajab Raat also stars Divya Dutta, Saqib Saleem, Shraddha Das, and Akshay Oberoi, with Kiku Sharda and Nushrratt Bharuccha in special appearances. The film us currently streaming on Netflix.