Actor Manoj Bajpayee, who is gearing up for the release of his 100th film ‘Bhaiyya ji’, shared that after a long gap, people of North India will get their representation of their culture, the relationship they are very familiar with, and the culture that belongs to them, on screen.

The Padma Shri awardee, who hails from Bihar has opened up on the representation of the cultural ethnicity through such characters.

Talking exclusively to IANS, Manoj said: "These are the characters that people have seen many times. Characters belonging to the North India region. This culture has been showcasing for many years, but, yeah there has been a two-decade gap, we concentrated a lot on urban stories. Somewhere these stories and characters were left behind."

"And that is why we are all very excited that after a long gap, the people of North India will get their representation on the screen, their culture, the relationship they are very familiar with, the culture that belongs to them. 'Bhaiyya ji' me hamare 'mitti' ki khusboo hain. When you make your film with all your heart, that is shown on the screen too. 'Hamne isko pure garv ke saath banaya hain'," said the actor, who was last seen in 'Silence 2'.

Bajpayee, who made his feature film debut with a one-minute role in 1994 action drama 'Drohkaal', and a minor role of a dacoit in Shekhar Kapur's 'Bandit Queen', shared he was not even aware that he has completed 99 films till date.

On 'Bhaiyya ji' being his 100th film, Manoj shared: "It was director Apoorv Singh Karki who came to me while we were shooting in Lucknow, and he told me that it will be my 100th film. I was surprised. When you look back, you see that it was never an easy journey. But God has been very very kind. He has shown me some failures, but he has also given me a lot of positivity and strength to carry on."

"I didn't decide that 'Bhaiyya ji' is going to be my 100th film. It was just destiny, and destiny's game and play. And I am happy that this is my 100th film because when I was growing up in Bihar, all the 70s commercial films used to mesmerise me. And those are the films which gave me an idea that I should become an actor," he said.

The movie showcases Manoj in all massy and Robin Hood image. Bollywood's 'Bhaijaan' Salman Khan, who played Inspector Chulbul Pandey in the 2010 action comedy 'Dabangg' called himself Robin Hood Pandey in the movie.

If 'Bhaiyya ji' will be able to break the 'Robinhood' image of Salman, Manoj said: "Those Salman, Shahrukh and Aamir are very big stars. Let's not even bring their names here. We tried to make a very good film, and I know we have a very good film in hand, because I have seen the film, and I just hope and pray that people who go to theatres, watch the film and celebrate 'Bhaiyya ji' on screen."

Speaking about the special preparations and challenges he faced while playing this role, Manoj said no character comes easy.

"You have to work hard on it. And here it was all the more physical, so for me to be fit for those actions, and do it the way the action director wanted me to do, it required a lot of physical fitness. My action director was my inspiration. And whatever he wanted me to do, whatever he wanted me to achieve, I just followed his instructions," added Manoj.

Produced by Vinod Bhanushali, Kamlesh Bhanushali, Samiksha Oswal, Shael Oswal, Shabana Raza Bajpayee, and Vikram Khakhar under the banners of Bhanushali Studios Limited, SSO Productions, and Aurega Studios production, the film is set to release on May 24.