Biopic Drama

SANJU

CAST: Ranbir Kapoor, Paresh Rawal, Vicky Kaushal, Anushka Sharma, Manisha Koirala

DIRECTION: Rajkumar Hirani

 

 

 

The turbulent off-screen life of Sanjay Dutt is the fodder for the new Rajkumar Hirani film ‘Sanju’. Hirani, known for his lighthearted moral entertainers that gave us such iconic protago­nists as the lovable gangster Munna Bhai (immortalized by Sanjay Dutt), the rebel engineer Rancho and the puzzled alien PK, backtracks to explore his frequent collabo­rator’s inner world in this highly fictionalized biopic. In less than three hours, Hirani and his co-writer Abhijat Joshi selec­tively piece together the film’s plot around key moments in Dutt’s trou­bled life: his battles against drugs and alcohol, his relationship with his father Sunil Dutt and mother Nargis, and his alleged involvement in the 1990s’ terrorist attack in Mumbai. The film does not intend to make the audience sit through a docu­mentary on the actor. Instead Hirani tries everything to elicit humor and sentimentality over Dutt’s tragic and bleak life experiences.

 

From the trailer, it was evident that this wouldn’t be a straightfor­ward biopic, and it isn’t. It’s struc­tured as Dutt’s retelling of his past. To do that Hirani comfortably settles in to the voice-over narrative device to allow Sanjay Dutt (played effort­lessly by an in-form Ranbir Kapoor) to guide and provide a commentary on events that made him Dutt he’s today or, in his own words, “the bad choices that shaped his journey”.

 

An early scene has Dutt getting upset about his autobiography titled ‘Babagiri’ which compares him to Mahatma Gandhi in its opening chapter itself. “I don’t want to be portrayed as a saint,” he declares and begins assaulting the writer (Piy­ush Mishra in a cameo) and burns all the copies of the book. This scene is clearly plugged to speak on behalf of Hirani’s approach; in making a point that ‘Sanju’ is not a hagiography like ‘Babagiri’. But no matter how hard Hirani tries not to pay homage to Dutt’s legacy, his personal close­ness to his subject keeps him from honestly portraying Dutt’s persona.

 

Hirani is least bothered about human complexities and exagger­ates from each bad chapter in his subject’s roller-coaster life. But I don’t hold this against the director. Though Hirani is shallow on char­acter study, he makes up by adding emotional heft to the scenes. Tear­jerker moments cleverly punctuate the film, and the one that stands out is the scene when Sanju’s dying mother Nargis (Manisha Koirala), who is full of verve, tries not to let her illness loom over her son’s bud­ding career. Sanju’s close friend­ship with his loyal friend Kamlesh (played by an equally remarkable Vicky Kaushal) is also a highlight.

 

But the glue that holds the film is Ranbir Kapoor. Kapoor portrays Dutt with genuine boyish charm and restraint. I couldn’t imagine anyone else in that role. There’s an ease on screen while Kapoor takes us through Dutt’s journey. Kapoor’s performance goes beyond imitating Dutt’s body gestures. Kapoor in fact brings genuine empathy to the char­acter that compels you to stay with him in his moments of despair, inad­equacy, fear and low self-esteem.

 

‘Sanju’ might not be a no-holds-barred depiction of Sanjay Dutt’s real life. It is however bookmarked with many heartfelt as well as funny scenes that will keep Dutt’s episodic journey interesting, albeit there’s always a sense of disbelief about Hirani’s broad-brush treatment of his subject. Take it as a large-scale Bollywood version of Sanjay Dutt’s life, and ‘Sanju’ offers lots of enter­tainment value.

 

Who should watch it?
Though it’s a biopic about Sanjay Dutt, ‘Sanju’ shares its DNA with past Rajkumar Hirani films. It might be not that truthful in unearthing deep secrets about Dutt’s life but viewers who enjoyed Hirani’s past films would definitely find ‘Sanju’ an engaging entertainer.