Ghooskhor Pandat row: Manoj Bajpayee says trolls abused him, targeted his family

Actor Manoj Bajpayee said the backlash over Ghooskhor Pandat brought threats, abuse and attacks on his family. He said the team apologised quickly, agreed to change the title, but felt people reacted without knowing the film's subject.

In Short

• Manoj Bajpayee said he did not expect backlash over the original film title
• He said an apology was issued within two days
• The actor also said criticism arose without knowledge of the film’s actual content

Actor Manoj Bajpayee said he and the team behind his upcoming Netflix film did not expect the controversy over its original title, Ghooskhor Pandat. In a recent interview, he said the backlash brought threats, trolling and online abuse, and that his family was also dragged into the row. He said the makers apologised within two days and did not see changing the title as a major issue.

The first-look teaser, unveiled at a Netflix event, was later taken down after objections were raised over the title and led to legal proceedings. The makers have since confirmed that the film will be retitled, though the new name and release date have not been announced.

What Bajpayee said

Speaking to PTI, Bajpayee said, “We didn’t expect it. But when it happened, in two days’ time we put out our apology. If anything is offending anyone with that much intensity, we as creative people are always there to mend our ways or correct ourselves.”

He said a title change was not a difficult issue for the team, adding, “We are creative people, we can come up with ten different titles and they will be equally exciting.”

The actor also admitted that the controversy affected the team for a while. “Were we affected? For some time. Till the time we put out our post, we were assessing the situation without getting affected too much mentally,” he said.

Bajpayee said he received threats during the uproar, but continued travelling without fear. “ When people are trolling you, abusing you and getting your family into the whole thing, I feel empathy for them,” he added.

He also said people had reacted to the title without knowing what the film was about. “The film talks about something else. But I think on social media now people are impatient, and they are eager and desperate to come out with their opinion without even fully knowing about the subject,” he said.

On engaging with such criticism, he added, “I’m a person who is very curious for knowledge, I’m a well-educated person, and I don’t have any intention, I don’t have that energy and time to argue with people, who are that impatient with their opinion or who are not even bothering to educate themselves. So, why to argue with them? Don’t get into the mud with the people who like to roll you into the mud.”

Film and court proceedings

The film stars Bajpayee alongside Nushrratt Bharuccha, Saqib Saleem, Akshay Oberoi and Divya Dutta. It is written by Neeraj Pandey and Ritesh Shah, and marks Shah’s directorial debut. Neeraj Pandey had earlier said “Pandat” was used as a nickname in the film and was not meant as an attack on any community. He also said the team acknowledged the hurt caused and would withdraw all promotional material pending review.

In the Supreme Court, the makers gave an undertaking that the title had been withdrawn and would be changed. The court took the affidavit on record and noted that the film was at the editing stage. The bench also asked the petitioners whether they had seen the film, and observed that once the title was withdrawn, the main grievance may not survive.

Meanwhile, Bajpayee is preparing for the release of Governor: The Silent Saviour, which will release in theatres on June 12.

- Ends