SANJU

  • 07 Jul - 13 Jul, 2018
  • Omair Alavi
  • Reviews

Sanju is Rajkumar Hirani’s way of patronising his most frequent collaborator Sanjay Dutt; it should be taken as fiction and not as a biopic as it is publicised since it gives many twists to Sanjay Dutt’s life, totally ignoring some of the most important incidents of his life just to come up with a story that hits the audience hard. That doesn’t mean that the film should not be watched – it has all the ingredients of a blockbuster and must be watched only as a tribute to the Dutts, especially the older one.

The film revolves around the life and times of Sunil and Sanjay Dutt from the moment they decided to make Rocky, the film that launched young Sanju’s career. His foray into drugs, his mother’s death, his stint at the rehab center and his friendship with Kamli are all discussed in the first half whereas the film talks about the terrorism charges post interval. How Rajkumar Hirani manages to show Sanjay Dutt as a family man and someone who would go to lengths to save his family is what makes the flick as interesting as anything you have seen in recent years.

Ranbir Kapoor is undoubtedly the star of the film as he manages to portray Sanjay Dutt in the best manner possible. As a youngster, he has no muscles but when he becomes popular, he develops a super fit body, whereas in the end he becomes old and looks the part which is why he must get awards for his brilliant performance. His chemistry with Paresh Rawal who plays Sunil Dutt is amazing as the two interact first as father-son and later as friends, going stronger with the passage of time. There is a lot of screen time given to Vicky Kaushal who plays Kamli, an unheard friend of Sanjay’s who has been there with him when he needed him the most. The youngster impresses in the presence of seasoned actors and if he continues to experiment like this, he will have a steady future in Bollywood.

Manisha Koirala as the ever graceful Nargis Dutt leads the guest appearances list that also features Dia Mirza, Boman Irani, Sonam Kapoor and Anushka Sharma; they all help the director in keeping the audience involved so much so that no one looks at the watch despite the film being 3 hours long. The script may not depict the reality of Sanju’s life but the writer Abhijat Joshi and Rajkumar Hirani successfully cast a spell on the audience, making them believe whatever they want. You will cry, you will laugh and you will feel happy to be sad while watching this enigmatic film from the maker of PK, Munnabhai MBBS and 3 Idiots. The art direction is excellent especially in the scenes that we have seen so many times on TV, because even after repeated viewing, the look fresh and real. Some may not agree with the way it defends Sanjay’s illegal activities like sleeping with prostitutes, doing drugs and keeping unlicensed guns at home, but the film’s aim is to make the audience aware of what was happening in Sanjay’s life, not how Sanjay’s life was affected by things happening around him. Watch it to feel Sanju’s pain and suffering!•

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