Actor Manoj Bajpayee met his now wife Shabana Raza in the 90s, and they tied the knot in 2006. However, the two don’t discuss religion with each other, and neither did he face any opposition from his family at the time of his marriage. Calling his wife a ‘proud Muslim’, just as he is a ‘proud Hindu’, Bajpayee said that they bonded over shared values.
In an interview with journalist Barkha Dutt, on Mojo Story, he said, “My marriage with Shabana, more than religion, is about the values that we share. And those values we don’t talk about. These are unsaid. Tomorrow, if one of us changes our values, our marriage wouldn’t last.”
Asked if there was any resistance about their inter-faith relationship among family members, Bajpayee said, “Had there been any, it was not conveyed to me, and it was not made obvious. I come from a Brahmin family, a feudal family. Her family had a lot of reputation and prestige to their name. But surprisingly, none of my family members ever objected to it. Never, till now. And if there’s any conversation that is happening with my wife, which has to do with religion…”
Adding that his wife isn’t particularly religious, the actor further maintained, “She’s spiritual, very, very spiritual. She’s a proud Muslim, and I’m a proud Hindu, but it doesn’t clash with each other,” adding, “Even if they would’ve talked about the religion of my wife, they could never have the strength or the courage to speak to me on my face. Because they know that I don’t mince my words, I’m very hard when it comes to anyone talking like that. I come very, very hard. I’m a tough guy then… Doston ke beech bhi agar aisi galat baat karte hain, jo karni nahi chahiye, I don’t take it nicely… People still talk about my temper,” he said.
The actor was last seen in ‘Gulmohar’.
