“What made Sanju possible was that Sanjay gave me access to the parts of his life that were not flattering”: Rajkumar Hirani Reveals What Made Sanju Special and What Drives His Next Biopic Choice

Years after delivering the record-breaking blockbuster Sanju, Rajkumar Hirani shares why honesty and human flaws mean more to him than glossy achievements.

When Rajkumar Hirani released Sanju in 2018, it did not just break box office records but also redefined how Indian cinema approaches biopics. Directed by Hirani and starring Ranbir Kapoor in a career-defining performance as Sanjay Dutt, the film showed the rollercoaster of a star’s life. Backed by a talented cast starring Paresh Rawal, Vicky Kaushal, Anushka Sharma, and Manisha Koirala, Sanju tackled heavy themes of addiction, media scrutiny, mistakes, and personal relationships with Hirani’s signature emotional warmth. Audiences connected with it globally, turning it into a box-office success and solidifying Hirani’s position as a visionary director who turns human vulnerability into cinema gold.

Ever since Sanju set that benchmark, offers and real-life scripts have continuously flooded the filmmaker’s desk. Yet, despite reading some extraordinary real-life accounts, Hirani has taken his time to select his next biographical feature. Opening up about his creative process, the director revealed that he looks beyond standard triumphs, seeking genuine emotional truth and raw honesty before taking on a story.

Talking about what draws him to a real person’s journey, Rajkumar Hirani shared:
“After Sanju, many people reached out to me to make biopics. Most were success stories. But a simple success story doesn’t excite me that much. I need a life with major ups and downs – great achievement, but also failure, mistakes, contradictions, difficult choices, relationships, maybe even periods when the person didn’t know how their own story was going to turn out. And then there is something even more important: the person has to be willing to open the door. What made Sanju possible was that Sanjay gave me access to the parts of his life that were not flattering. He was willing to lay himself bare – the good, the bad, the embarrassing, and the painful. That gave us a human being, not just a famous person’s success story.”

For Hirani, real cinema lies in that very willingness to stand bare before the audience. His ability to find light in dark corners and transform complex real-life struggles into moving experiences remains unmatched. As fans eagerly wait to see whose story next catches his eye, one thing is certain: whenever Rajkumar Hirani chooses to step back into the world of real-life biopics, it will be a story that touches hearts and stays with us forever.