Not Manoj Bajpayee, this actor was first choice for The Family Man?

The Family Man, directed by Raj and DK, has become one of the most popular web series on OTT. It focuses on Manoj Bajpayee’s Srikant Tiwari, a secret agent who works for the Threat Analysis and Surveillance Cell (TASC). While the actor has made a mark for his portrayal, he was not the first choice for the character. 

3 things you need to know

• The Family Man first premiered in September 2019.
• The show's second season marked the OTT debut of Samantha Ruth Prabhu.
• The third season of The Family Man has been confirmed by the makers.

Chiranjeevi was offered The Family Man?

As per several reports, The Family Man producer Ashwini Dutt said in a recent interview that the role was initially written with Chiranjeevi in mind. It has come to light that the project was not conceptualised in the long format but as a movie. However, Chiranjeevi did not show any interest in the script and turned it down. That’s when the role went to Manoj Bajpayee. 

(A poster for Khiladi No. 150 featuring Chiranjeevi | Image: lycaproductions/X)

Why did Chiranjeevi reject The Family Man? 

The role was offered to Chiranjeevi when he was doing his Khiladi No 150. Srikant was supposed to be the father of two children. However, he was concerned about whether the audience would be willing to accept him as the father of two children or not. He voiced this concern to Raj & DK. When this was written out of the script and was reintroduced to Chiranjeevi, he still chose not to do it. 

Later, Manoj Bajpayee bagged the role and made it his own. Among many accolades, the spy-thriller show scored two awards Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. It also catapulted Samantha Ruth Prabhu to pan-India fame.