Sanju may be shattering box office records, but the biopic directed by Rajkumar Hirani is unapologetic in portraying Sanjay Dutt as a constant victim of his circumstances, be it at the beginning of his career or when he was a star. There’s always a reason attributed for his slipping up.
While the film has been accused of attempting to whitewash Sanjay Dutt’s image, the audience has been near-unanimous in applauding Ranbir Kapoor’s transformation into Dutt. The original Dutt stayed silent through the bouquets and the brickbats, but finally opened up in an interview to India Today TV. Reacting to allegations that Sanju was an exercise to clean his image, he said it was a little too much to spend Rs 30-40 crore to do that. He also said he was happy that others were learning from his mistakes.
“I just want to say that Munnabhai is already made, that avatar is already out. I don’t think anyone will spend Rs 30-40 crore to change his image. That is too much of an amount. I have told the truth and the truth has been accepted by India; the box office collection shows that.”
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The film shows how Sanjay Dutt, after achieving dizzying success, turns a drug addict, goes through rehabilitation and faces other personal demons in his life, including an ill-thought decision to keep an illegally-procured AK 56 in his house. The film speaks of his fleeting relationships with women, his bond with buddy Kamli, the radio channel he runs from prison, and how his father always had his back, even during the phase when he was jailed.
According to a report in The Indian Express, Sanju has been breaking records in theatres and is expected to enter the Rs 300-crore club in the coming weekend; the current collection of the film is over Rs 265 crore.