This Is For Real

BOI: Rajkumar, biopics in Hindi cinema are usually synonymous with glorification. There is a widely held perception that subjects are treated with kid gloves.

Rajkumar Hirani (RH): Even the trailer tells you that there has been no attempt to 'go soft' on Sanju (Sanjay Dutt) in any way. Clearly, he admits he had a gun, he had many girlfriends, and everything has been revealed about his life. I keep saying that there is no reason for us to make a film to glorify somebody. I could have made a Munna Bhai instead and people would have watched it. I could have done anything else.

What attracted me to make this film was his life. If somebody had told me, 'Please make this because we need to rectify our image', I don't think any of us needs to do that. We all are doing pretty well with our lives and we don't need to make a film like that. It's just that his story is so fascinating that I was completely attracted to it. I heard the father-son story, the friends' story and I was, like, there is so much meat in this story.

BOI: Ranbir, when you were approached for a Rajkumar Hirani film, you were hoping that it would not be the Sanjay Dutt biopic. Why?

Ranbir Kapoor (RK): Because of the way everyone have reacted the first time they got to know that Ranbir was playing Sanju in the biopic. Like, how will I be able to do it? I am completely different, my personality is different and I look different. I have to play a real-life person who is still so relevant, who is still popular, still working in the movies. How will we try and make a biopic on that?

Never in the history of cinema has an actor who is still acting had a biopic made on him. All these things raised doubts and fears in my mind. Otherwise, who doesn't want to work with Rajkumar Hirani! But then it came with the biggest challenge – to play Sanjay Dutt. Once I read the script, once I heard the story that Raju sir was making, it was clear that it was one of the best scripts I had ever heard, one of the best stories I had ever heard. And it was of a real-life person.

BOI: After hearing the story of Sanjay Dutt's life, Raju said he felt he had not really lived in his life. Ranbir, you have lived a colourful life, did you still feel that way?

RK: Yes, even though say I live a star's life, such a glamorous life, I didn't live life even one per cent of what Sanjay Dutt has. And apart from the fun and entertainment he has had, he had a very controversial, intense life with a lot of despair, a lot of sadness, and at the same time he has had a lot of fun too.

To explore both sides of a personality in one film is amazing. Where you have biopics like say The Wolf Of Wall Street on one hand, then a biopic like Gandhi, and say Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, this film seemed like it included elements of every genre. There was every genre possible in one film, in one person's life and I think that was really exciting for me.

BOI: When you are making a film on a public figure, you are portraying someone's crucial moments on screen too. Do you feel a sense of responsibility to portray it in the right manner?

RH: No matter what, you have to stay true to the story in a biopic. We did some amount of research, which was not only speaking to Sanju, we also spoke to all the lawyers who handled his case, we spoke to the cops who were involved, we spoke to not only his family but also his friends. When you speak to all of them, you get an idea that this is correct or maybe this is not 100 per cent out there, and you have to take that up. In fact, a lot of things in the film will seem like fiction to you but most of it is inspired by true events from his life, which is just fascinating to all of us and the audience.

BOI: Ranbir, when you were portraying the hardships that Sanjay Dutt went through in his life, what did you feel? Is it difficult to detach yourself from it because it is the reality?

RK: When I was performing this part, I had to often sit back and think that what I was feeling like by simply acting was something someone actually went through in real life. What must that have felt like for him? The gravity of life hits you. It's your job as an actor to be true to everything you do, whether it is comedy, emotion, drama, anything, even silence.

There has to be a sense of truth to everything. And that comes only with a lot of understanding of the part, a lot of homework, a lot of positivity and a lot of inspiration. The pressure came with Rajkumar Hirani as a director, it came with this part, with Sanjay Dutt's life, this was a big responsibility for me and I knew the expectations attached to this film. They are just really inspiring.

BOI: And do you think your perception towards him has changed?

RK: Absolutely! It's a different Sanjay Dutt I see now. I was so close to Sanjay Dutt but I feel I didn't know him. This is a very human side of Sanjay Dutt. When we are trying to get to know someone, we rarely see the human side of that person, touch that person's soul. And I think Sanju sir has very graciously revealed his life in a very human way. He has revealed himself as a flawed person, as someone who stumbled because of his mistakes, the value of what his family did to get him out of the trouble he was in, and what his friend meant to him. It is very hard to do.If I had to lend my life to a book format or a story format, I would probably skip all these chapters, I would probably highlight a more positive effect that I could have on the audience. I guess Sanju sir wanted to show this side also because people can learn from his mistakes… about drugs and everything, how detrimental it is to one's life, where it can take you, and how hard it is to come back, the mistakes he made with the whole time he went to jail and with the AK-56 rifle and the relationships in his life. I think we have to learn a lot from him.

BOI: Raju, for a biopic, it is very important to get the entire cast right.

RH: (Cuts In). Yes, it is very important to get the right cast. If you get the right cast, half your battle is won. We are lucky that we got most of the people right. The most difficult casting for this film was for Sunil Dutt saab. In the film, we need an actor who begins from when he is 51-52 till 76, when Dutt saab passed away. Also, what happens is that every actor has some tools to age. But when you want to show a younger actor ageing, you can add a beard and a wig by making them white and you can show their hair thinning too.

BOI: And, Ranbir, what makes Rajkumar Hirani the director that made you say yes to a film without hearing the script?

RK: Apart from the great films he makes and being a great director, he is an amazing person. I keep joking that he has to work with me but even if he doesn't, I will always remain a fan of his. Now I am closer to him; I visit him at his house, have a drink with him. I can watch a film with him. I can chat with him about anything.