New Delhi: One might assume that having directed him in blockbusters such as Munna Bhai MBBS (2003) and Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), Rajkumar Hirani and actor Sanjay Dutt might be the best of buddies. Hirani, however, says that he only got to know the real Dutt when the 55-year-old was out on a two-month parole earlier this year, and that’s when he decided that Dutt’s story deserved to be heard.
“I just went to meet him once, and he opened up and started talking about his life. He has never done that before. He literally poured his heart out because by then, he had already spent some time in jail, and he was like, ‘let me finish the complete term, and do away with it once and for all’,” says Hirani, who was intrigued by the story of Dutt’s life. “I felt, God! What a life he’s led! That’s the day I thought there’s a story in there, and then I sat with him for 25 days, every evening, 7-8 hours, and started meeting his friends. But we don’t want to glorify him (in the film),” adds Hirani.
Currently, Dutt, who is serving sentence in Pune’s Yerwada Jail Pune for illegal possession of arms in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, has applied for a 14-day furlough.
