Manoj Bajpayee To Play Mahatma Gandhi In Sudhir Mishra's Next Film

Manoj Bajpayee, a four-time National Award winner who has played gangsters, spies and bureaucrats across three decades, is set to take on the most documented figure in modern Indian history. Per The Times of India and The Hindu, the actor will play Mahatma Gandhi in an untitled feature directed by Sudhir Mishra, with Anubhav Sinha producing through his banner Benaras Media Works.

• Manoj Bajpayee will play Mahatma Gandhi in a yet-to-be-titled film directed by Sudhir Mishra (The Times of India and The Hindu, 20 August)
• Anubhav Sinha produces the film under his banner Benaras Media Works (Moneycontrol and News18, 20 August)
• The story covers 21 days in Gandhi's life around Independence, when he chose to walk away from the celebrations in Delhi (The New Indian Express and News18, 20 August)
• Saurabh Shukla has joined the cast (Telegraph India and Variety, 20 August)
• Variety reports Narendra Hirawat has also boarded the project as the makers unveiled plot details (Variety, 20 August)
• This is the first time Bajpayee will portray Gandhi on screen (Cinema Express and India TV, 20 August)

The announcement swept across Indian entertainment coverage within hours on Wednesday, with News18, Moneycontrol, Telegraph India, ThePrint and Variety all carrying the story, an unusually broad first-day footprint for a casting reveal without a title attached.

The final 21 days: what the film covers

The film is not a cradle-to-grave biopic. Per The New Indian Express, it dramatises 21 days in Gandhi's life during Independence, a chapter the makers describe as lesser known. As News18 reports, the premise turns on an unexpected choice: at the moment the nation stepped into freedom and Delhi became the centre of power, Gandhi walked away from the celebrations.

Sudhir Mishra, speaking about the project in remarks carried by IANS and syndicated widely, said the film sheds light on those 21 days rather than attempting to retell a life already covered by decades of cinema. The makers have not yet announced a title or a release window.

Mishra and Sinha, friends turned collaborators

The project pairs two filmmakers best known for political and social drama. Mishra directed Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi, Dharavi and Is Raat Ki Subah Nahin; Sinha's recent run includes Mulk, Article 15 and Thappad. Per News18, the two have been close friends for over two decades, and this is their first producer-director collaboration on this scale.

The supporting cast has started to fill out. Telegraph India reports that Saurabh Shukla, Bajpayee's co-star from Satya, has joined the film, while Variety adds that Narendra Hirawat has come aboard as the makers unveiled plot details, cast additions and the producing line-up in one sweep.

Why the casting resonates

Gandhi has been played on screen by Ben Kingsley, Rajit Kapur, Darshan Jariwala and Neeraj Kabi, among others, but Bajpayee brings a different register: a performer associated with interior, coiled characters rather than saintly portraiture. Cinema Express notes this is the first time he will play the Mahatma, and trade watchers quoted across Wednesday's coverage framed the casting as the film's central bet.

For The NE Times readers tracking the slate, the project joins a crowded season of history-adjacent Hindi cinema, from Batwara 1947's Partition drama to Ramayana's mythological epic, suggesting studios see appetite for period stories built around known names and unknown chapters.

This article is original commentary and analysis by The NE Times. Background facts were referenced from The Times of India, The Hindu, The New Indian Express, News18, Moneycontrol, Telegraph India, Variety, Cinema Express.