Manoj Bajpayee says ‘angrez’ daughter Ava’s inability to speak Hindi causes him great ’embarrassment’

Actor Manoj Bajpayee also recalled the time when Ava invaded Tiger Shroff's vanity van on the set of Baaghi 2.

New Delhi | Updated: May 28, 2023 08:33 AM IST

3 min read

Manoj Bajpayee with his wife Shabana and their daughter. (Photo: Manoj/Instagram)

Listen to this article

Your browser does not support the audio element.

Actor Manoj Bajpayee had a laugh at the expense of his daughter Ava, when he revealed in a new interview that she doesn’t know Hindi. He said that Ava’s Hindi teacher is very disappointed about this, because she expected her to be better at the language, considering her father’s body of work.

To get better at Hindi, Manoj said, Ava has started watching soap operas with a friend, even though she doesn’t like watching his movies. He also said that Ava is quite outgoing, and that she made friends with Tiger Shroff by herself. He told Janice Sequeira, “Ava came on my set for the first time on Baaghi 2. Ahmed Khan welcomed her, she called action also for one scene. She was pampered. She came into my van, and said, ‘Where is Tiger Shroff?'”

Also read | Manoj Bajpayee says his wife Shabana felt ‘insulted, humiliated’ after watching one of his films: ‘She said stop doing films for money’

Manoj said that he left Ava in the van, and told his assistant to look after her while he went for a shot. When he returned, his assistant told him that Ava had gone into Tiger’s van next door, and introduced herself as ‘Manoj Bajpayee’s daughter’. “Yeh badi opportunist hai, Hindi-vindi seekh nahi rahi hai, lekin Hindi filmon ke actor iske favourite hain (She’s an opportunist, she doesn’t know Hindi, but loves Hindi film actors),” he said.

He explained the not knowing Hindi bit in more detail as well. “Puri Angrez hai woh. Usse daant padti rehti hai phir bhi nahi bolti woh (She’s a foreigner. She gets scolded about this, but she doesn’t improve). Imagine what must be happening to her Hindi teacher. At the PTM, you know what she said? ‘Manoj ji, what is this, I was so happy to know your daughter is in my class. She doesn’t even speak Hindi.” He continued, “She says, ‘Mujhe Hindi aata hai’. I said, ‘Batao tumhare papa ka naam kya hai?’ And she replied, ‘Mera papa…’ It’s embarrassing for me…”

Manoj is known for playing characters from the Hindi heartland in his movies. He hails from the state of Bihar, and his married to Shabana Raza.

From the homepage