Sanjay Dutt appeared on the actor Shekhar Suman-hosted talk show, Shekhar Tonite, on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti. The actor shared his opinion about the current state of the country, saying that he doesn't feel "peace" in the nation anymore. His comment courted backlash on social media.
What Sanjay Dutt said
On Sunday evening, the actor took to his X account to pen a statement and clarified his comments that were made on the show. It read, "I would like to clarify that it was never my intention to hurt, offend, or disrespect the sentiments of any individual, community, or institution.
My remarks were made in the context of a scripted conversation intended to be light-hearted and humorous. The spirit behind them was similar to the humour and satire seen in films like Munna Bhai, particularly the concept of 'Gandhigiri,' which was intended to convey a message of love, warmth, togetherness, and goodwill. Unfortunately, my words were interpreted outside of that intended context."
Context
Sanjay had made the comments with his trademark humour, taking a cue from his character from Munna Bhai MBBS. He spoke about the state of the country and explained why he no longer feels the same sense of peace in India as he once did. He said, “The people of this country are so lovely. There should be peace here. I can’t feel that peace in our country anymore. We Indians are large-hearted people, and we are hospitable. We have given so much, and we should always remain that way. I pray to Shivji that those days come back soon.”
{{/usCountry}}Sanjay had made the comments with his trademark humour, taking a cue from his character from Munna Bhai MBBS. He spoke about the state of the country and explained why he no longer feels the same sense of peace in India as he once did. He said, “The people of this country are so lovely. There should be peace here. I can’t feel that peace in our country anymore. We Indians are large-hearted people, and we are hospitable. We have given so much, and we should always remain that way. I pray to Shivji that those days come back soon.”
{{/usCountry}}Sanjay Dutt holds a 10-year UAE Golden Visa, and his family -- wife Maanayata Dutt and twins Shahraan and Iqra -- lives in Dubai. He commutes between Mumbai and Dubai for work. In another segment of the show, Sanjay was asked to imagine himself as the Prime Minister for five minutes and say something to the people of the country. The actor then delivered a monologue in Munna Bhai-style.
Sanjay pretended to be the country's Prime Minister, and even included a veiled joke at PM Narendra Modi's foreign trips. He said, “Bole toh itna bada desh hai, itne saare log hain aur ab hum sabki zimmedari apun ke upar. Par aap log ekdum tension nahi lene ka. Apun is khushi ko celebrate karne videsh nahi jaane wala hai. Apun idharich rahega, aap sab logon ke beech. Nahi to PM aur janta mein connection kaise banega. Lekin aap log ekdum tension nahi lene ka. Apun is khushi ko celebrate karne videsh nahi jaane wala hai. Apun idharich rahega, aap sab logon ke beech. Nahi to PM aur janta mein connection kaise banega."
This translates to, "This is such a huge country, there are so many people, and now the responsibility of all of them is on me. But you people don’t have to worry at all. I am not going abroad to celebrate this happiness. I will stay right here, among all of you. Otherwise, how will there be a connection between the PM and the people? But you people don’t have to worry at all. I am not going abroad to celebrate this happiness. I will stay right here, among all of you. Otherwise, how will there be a connection between the PM and the people?"
On the work front, Sanjay was last seen in the political drama Aakhri Sawal, which hit cinemas in May.
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