'Biopics more interesting in fictional format'

Hirani spoke at a '#FilmsForChange' initiative, organised by Good Pitch India and the Indian Documentary Foundation here. He was there along with Nandita Das, Naseeruddin Shah, Rahul Dholakia and Javed Jaffery.

While Hirani is making a film on Sanjay's life now, the BBC had made a documentary on the controversial actor's life back in 1996.

Asked whether he ever thought of making a documentary on Sanjay's life instead of doing it in a fictionalised format, Hirani said: "Certain subjects will be more engaging if they are done in a fiction format and certain subjects would probably be more interesting in a documentary format.

"PK was the only film which I started with reverse where I wanted to talk about God and religion, but in the journey of making that film, I realised that I am ending up talking very little about it. There is so much to talk about God and religion that you cannot actually say enough

in a fictional format.

"In a fictional format, it is expected that you have to sugarcoat your story, entertain the audience and still manage to say what you want to say. So, at some stage, I do want to make a documentary."

"There are still unsaid or undiscussed issues that I haven't been able to show in 'PK', so I want to do a documentary where you can say what you want to say. But in a film like 'Sanju', I think it's more engaging as a fictional film where you see another actor doing it."

Actor Ranbir Kapoor essays Sanjay's life on-screen in Sanju, which is set for release on June 29.