Indian actor Manoj Bajpayee will star in investigative thriller film “Despatch,” directed by Kanu Behl and produced by Ronnie Screwvala’s RSVP. “The film unfolds in the world of crime journalism and Bajpayee plays a character who finds himself sucked into the murky underbelly of business and crime.
Bajpayee, one of India’s most respected actors, has won best actor at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards twice, for “Aligarh” and “Bhonsle.” Behl’s debut feature “Titli” bowed at Cannes in 2014, where it was nominated for the Camera d’Or and the Un Certain Regard award.
RSVP, headed by former Disney India head Screwvala, is the middle of a production boom. It is in the thick of several projects including “Ashwatthama,” “Five Past Midnight, “Sitara,” “Pippa,” and has just wrapped “Rashmi Rocket.”
“Despatch” is designed as a direct-to-digital project, but a streaming platform has not yet been announced.
“The scope for storytelling is incredible right now with new platforms and evolved audience tastes,” Screwvala said. “At RSVP we are focused on developing our own scripts and screenplays and working with directors that share the common vision of storytelling. With its unique perspective and gripping storyline ‘Despatch’ is the kind of content we believe in.”
“ ‘Despatch’ is a story I’ve been itching to tell for a while now,” Behl said. “It reflects our lives and times and could not be getting made at a more pertinent moment.”
“As an actor I want to be part of stories that I want to tell and that deserve to be told. ‘Despatch’ is one such film,” Bajpayee added. “With the digital age, our stories can now reach and be accessed by viewers across the globe and I’m confident this film will have many takers because it is relevant to our times. I am looking forward to collaborating with Kanu Behl who is well versed with the changing times and has total control on his craft of storytelling.”
Bajpayee will next be seen in the second season of Amazon Prime Video India’s “Family Man.”