Sanjay Dutt’s jail sentence, various court trials and speculation about his role in the 1993 Mumbai bombings have always been the subject of much discussion. His co-star Sharad Kelkar, who developed a close friendship with Dutt during the shooting of his comeback film, Bhoomi, says that Dutt was always open about his troubled life.
“He is very verbal and didn’t hide anything. He has suffered so much that now he has shut it off. He is above all that he has gone through. He wants to move ahead and not remember anything of his past,” says Sharad, who recently visited Dutt’s house for Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations with his family.
He mentions that he would often ask Dutt about the days spent inside the jail. “I sometimes used to ask him things like ‘baba aapne aise kiya tha aur aisa hua tha’ and he would tell me ‘yaar ab itna dekh liya hai ki farak nahi padta’. Once I asked him, ‘did you get chicken inside the jail’ and he said,‘yeah twice a year. Itna hi milta tha and I used to get Rs 35 every day, so if I could save something out of it, I would have more’,” recalls Sharad, who plays the role of the lead antagonist in the film.
{{/usCountry}}He mentions that he would often ask Dutt about the days spent inside the jail. “I sometimes used to ask him things like ‘baba aapne aise kiya tha aur aisa hua tha’ and he would tell me ‘yaar ab itna dekh liya hai ki farak nahi padta’. Once I asked him, ‘did you get chicken inside the jail’ and he said,‘yeah twice a year. Itna hi milta tha and I used to get Rs 35 every day, so if I could save something out of it, I would have more’,” recalls Sharad, who plays the role of the lead antagonist in the film.
{{/usCountry}}Stating that Dutt is still a young kid at heart, Sharad adds, “He is full of life and enjoys each and every moment. If there was someone else and not Dutt, he would have been in a shell or slipped into depression. But baba is such a happy person.”
Admiring the way Dutt has maintained his friendships in the industry; Sharad calls it his “most beautiful earnings.” He says, “From last 40 years, he still has the same set of friends, who are by his side. That’s the beauty of his personality. Whatever he became in life, he didn’t leave or forget his original [real] friends. Everybody loves him and respects him.” Not just his friends, Sharad says that Dutt would be friendly with everyone on sets. “All the stuntmen, who are now 58 or 60 and retired, they all were there on set whether they had any work or not and baba talks to them like friends.”
Sharad will always remember being a part of Dutt’s film for a long time, as he not only got to know Dutt on a personal level, but also found an elder brother in him. “He [Sanjay Dutt] used to treat me like a younger brother and I feel very special about it. I mean, with someone like him treating me as a brother… what else do you want in life?” says an excited Sharad.
Follow @htshowbiz for more
Get more updates from Bollywood, Taylor Swift, Hollywood, Music and Web Series along with Latest Entertainment News at Hindustan Times.
Get more updates from Bollywood, Taylor Swift, Hollywood, Music and Web Series along with Latest Entertainment News at Hindustan Times.