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Manoj Bajpayee, recently, opened up about a memorable incident from the 1999 Filmfare Awards. The 55-year-old added that he was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role alongside Salman Khan. A quick recap — Manoj Bajpayee was selected for his role, Bhiku Mhatre, in Satya. Oh, and, Salman Khan won the trophy for portraying Aman Mehra in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. In a conversation with Pinkvilla, the actor was asked if it is true that, while receiving the award, Salman had said that Manoj Bajpayee deserved it. To this, he answered, “Bahut badi sachai. Kyuki hum log the vaha pe. Aur jab naam announce hua tha to jitne log the vaha pe sab naraaz ho gaye the. Aur log khade hokar ke chilla rahe the ‘Bhiku Mhatre, Bhiku Mhatre.’ [It’s true. Because we were both there. And when the name was announced, everyone was upset. People were standing up and shouting ‘Bhiku Mhatre, Bhiku Mhatre.’]”

Manoj Bajpayee continued, “Aur Salman Khan jab upar gya to Salman ne, very gracious of him, jaake bola ki pta nahi mujhe kyu diya inhone. Yeh deserve toh Manoj [Bajpayee] karta hai. He said that aur vo bolne ke liye bahut hi large-hearted hona pdta hai aapko. And Salman did that. I really felt good ki industry mein kuch aise log bhi hai. Jabki mujhe best acting in critics’ award mila tha (at the) Filmfare. [Salman went to the stage and said, “I don’t know why they picked me. Manoj deserves this.” He said that, and it takes a lot of large-heartedness to say that. Salman did that. I really felt good that there are people like him in the industry. Even though I received the award for best acting in critics’ at the Filmfare Awards.]”

On the work front, Manoj Bajpayee was last seen in the Netflix series Killer Soup. Meanwhile, Salman Khan is set to appear in Sikandar.