Rajkumar Hirani On Sanju: If We Had To Whitewash Anyone, We Would Have Made Sanjay Mahatma Gandhi

Rajkumar Hirani's Sanju, which is based on Sanjay Dutt's life, broke many records at the box office.

By Puri

Updated: Monday, August 13, 2018, 16:59 [IST]

Rajkumar Hirani's Sanju, which is based on Sanjay Dutt's life, broke many records at the box office. Though the film was loved by the audience, many feel that it was an attempt to clean Dutt's image. However, Hirani does not agree with it. At a recent event, Rajkumar Hirani and Abhijat Joshi (writer of Sanju) were asked about media bashing and whitewashing Sanjay's image in the film, to which Hirani told a leading news agency, "If I start on that, I can talk on it for the full day."

While Abhijat Joshi said, "There is no media bashing at all. We are great fans of the media. What we are bashing is a certain section which sensationalises things and uses a question mark to make things 'chatpata' (spicy). That has been critiqued, and I am amazed there has been no introspection on that side. No one has even said that it happens."

We Criticised That One News In Sanju

Rajkumar Hirani added, "Today if the world believes that he had RDX, it's based on that one news, so we have criticised that. But now when we are told that the whole film is about media bashing, it's again picking up a headline."

What Was Sanju's Crime?

"When we show a corrupt police officer, it doesn't mean all policemen are wrong... It's a section. Whitewashing as a word is being thrown open. If you've watched the film, what was Sanju's crime."

What Have I Whitewashed?

"Yes, he kept the gun, and we have shown that. We have shown that he served five years in jail and that he is saying it was a mistake... So where is the question of whitewashing? What have I whitewashed? I want to understand that.''

I Have Shown He Slept With His Friend's Girlfriends

"People are using this word whitewash. I want to know what have I whitewashed? I have shown that he had 308 girlfriends, that he was so addicted to drugs, he slept with his friend's girlfriend. Is this whitewashing?"