Sanju: A Tale Of One Man With Many Bad Choices?

As the tagline of the movie 'Sanju' says ‘One man, many lives', the movie does take you through the different phases of Sanjay Dutt’s life. However, it tries to put the actor in a positive light by showing a man whose life is a result of many bad choices. The ‘Vaastav’ actor, undoubtedly had a roller coaster ride of a life with his alleged 300 girlfriends, his issues with substance abuse, his alleged involvement in the 1993 Mumbai blast and his professionalism and unprofessionalism.

‘Sanju’ is the biopic of Sanjay Dutt’s life or rather his version of all his wrongdoings. An attempt at reflecting his life in a positive manner and a successful one at that as Raj Kumar Hirani, with his convincing storytelling, has gained the empathy of the audience.

The film begins with Sanjay Dutt looking for a writer to pen his biography, while he has a month to surrender himself to the police. Here is when Anushka Sharma, a popular biographer writer makes her way, with an unnecessary and unconvincing British accent (as she is shown to be living in London).

Sanjay Dutt’s life then unfolds chapter by chapter as Anushka Sharma sets out to verify his story from the characters in his story itself. Of course, she gets convinced and writes the book. Ranbir Kapoor as Sanjay Dutt is flawless. As the movie proceeds, you actually feel that it is Sanjay Dutt who is narrating the story, instead of Ranbir. As they say, ‘Imitation is the best form of flattery’ the 35-year-old actor has brilliantly executed Sanjay’s walk, mannerism, and even his voice to an extent. After delivering hits like ‘Munna Bhai’, ‘P.K’ and ‘3 Idiots’, director Rajkumar Hirani has yet again showcased his prowess in storytelling. He has beautifully encompassed three decades of the ‘Vaastav’ actors life, in three hours. 

However, the film does miss out on important aspects of Sanjay Dutt’s life. It is understood as to why they chose to not show his alleged affair with actress Madhuri Dixit,  but the absence of his first and second wife and his daughter Trishala Dutt raises questions.

The movie largely focuses on the importance of two characters in Sanjay Dutt’s life; one is his father Sunil Dutt who stood by his son and helped him overcome his drug addiction, the second being his best friend played by Vicky Kaushal who is so loyal to him that he sacrifices his dream car to be by his friend. Vicky Kaushal’s performance as Kamlesh stands out and Paresh Rawal as Sunil Dutt also puts up a convincing act. The first half is completely dedicated to the impact of substance abuse on Sanjay Dutt’s life, losing his mother to cancer before the release of his first film and the love of his life, Ruby, who is forced to leave him because of his drug addiction.

The second half straightaway jumps to the 1992-93 Babri Masjid riots, where Sunil Dutt ,who is an MP, is busy helping out the victims, while his son who has recovered from drug addiction has turned into a womanizer, to the extent that he sleeps with his best friend's girlfriend and questions her character. Other than this scene, there is absolutely no reasoning as to why he turned a womanizer. 

At this point, his ‘careless’ son decides to borrow arms from the underworld in order to protect his family from the threats they were receiving, for helping the Muslim community, post the Babri Masjid riots. 

As his case proceeds, Sanjay holds the media responsible for his situation. Sanjay Dutt goes from page 3 to make front page headlines, the first time he is  taken into custody for his links to the 1993 blast.

A frustrated Sunil Dutt ends up at a press which carried the headline, 'Finished?’, only to blast at the editor for misusing the question mark and twisting facts according to their will.

The media blame goes to the extent that the makers have a special song to blame the media for dramatising facts in the name of anonymous sources. The song ‘Baba Bolta hai bas hogaya ’ has Ranbir and Sanjay explaining how their lives are ruined by over-dramatising of news by the media. 

Although the media has been often accused of sensationalizing facts, that does not paint a picture which is incorrect. Sanjay Dutt blames the media for not clearing his name when the TADA acquitted him of terrorist activities and declared that he is not a terrorist. He, however, receives a six-year term for acquiring illegal weapons. Blaming the media, however, cannot make him a great man and rectify his wrongdoings. 

In short, ‘Sanju’ is a selective narrative that glorifies Sanjay Dutt’s tumultuous life, but nevertheless an enjoyable cinematic experience. Also, the supporting cast including Dia Mirza, Sonam Kapoor, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani and  Karishma Tanna stand out with their performance.