Se ond t e lory at APSA

Mano Ba ayee w ns Best A tor award at APSA 2019

Mano a ayee has on the Best Performance by an Actor a ard at the th sia acific creen ards ( ) held in Brisbane, for his role in Devashish Makhija’s Bhonsle.

The thespian created history by ecoming the only actor to ha e on the a ard t ice re iously earning the recognition in 2016 for his underrated performance in the brilliant Aligarh.

India also created a record of sorts by inning in the same category for four years in a ro . a umar ao and a a uddin iddi ui on the a ard for their performances in Newton ( ) and Manto ( ) res ecti ely.

Bhonsle is a film that sensitively explores the nuances of political and regional conflicts unra elling in ndia.

Bajpayee, 50, took the opportunity at the a ards night to shed light on the numerous financial obstacles the film had to endure before finally going into production; a sad fate many independent Indian films have had to endure consistently. hen e ashish the director came to me ith the scri t fi e years ago lo ed it he said. ince then e had een loo ing for financers to roduce the mo ie. Those ho ecause of me initially sho ed interest in the ro ect also ran a ay. inally e managed to get a grou of eo le ho ere ready to in est.

e added inning this a ard is oetic ustice for e ery team mem er many of hom or ed on the sets for days ithout ay. ould li e to congratulate a id ohammad adeh ( ran) and others for giving such remarkable performances in their films. ha e learnt a lot from all of you. edicating the in to his daughter ano said as raying that in an a ard this e ening not for anyone ut my little daughter. he is at home ho ing for my ictory he added. n a ost a ard inter ie the actor reiterated the importance of the recognition. or me eing nominated at APSA itself is a great achievement and I can t elie e ha e on it t ice. The films nominated here are atched glo ally and are judged by a panel of accomplished ury mem ers ho don t com romise on uality and e cellence. lso this a ard is a testament to the lood and s eat of my colleagues and the years of aiting the ro ect had to undergo.

Manoj is also one of the producers along ith iyush ingh hayanand ingh aura h u ta and andii a oor. e also than ed his co stars ho also gained ra e re ie s antosh u e ar and shita ha ra orty ingh and other nominees.

In Bhonsle, Manoj plays the titular character, a retired Mumbai Police consta le hose monotonous life goes a ry hen he finds himself shielding a young ihari oman and her little brother against the vitriol of his Marathi neigh our. The film is a commentary on the ramifications that hate-filled politics and jingoism resorted to by politicians have on the general public and is set against the background of the long-standing simmering tensions et een arathi residents and ihari migrants.

The a ard is another feather in the ca for ano ho has had a stellar year including inning the adma hri and gaining ra e re ie s for his first e series The Family Man, no streaming on ma on rime.

Another Indian, emerging filmmaker idham an e on the oung inema ard for The Gold-Laden Sheep and The Sacred Mountain (Sona Dhwandi Bhed Te Suchha Pahad) hich as also nominated for Best Feature Film and chie ement in inematogra hy. (The film tells the story of a remote mountainous culture under threat from modernity. hen a jet fighter crashes in the region, an old shepherd leaves his flock to find and save sur i ors. o e er the et has crashed in an area considered to be sacred - the shepherd stops short, fearing that it might mean bad luck for his animals if he enters holy ground.)

The region’s highest accolade in film, the uni uely ustralian initiati e ignites and celebrates the cinematic excellence of the countries and areas of the region. Stories encompassing 13 countries and areas ere a arded at the annual e ent ith the ma ority of the inners also eing their country s o cial su mission for the cademy ards in the est nternational eature ilm ategory.