As Sanjay Dutt remains one of Bollywood’s most popular stars, talks about the turbulent phase of his life during the 1993 Mumbai blasts case keep resurfacing even today. One such moment was veteran actor and politician Sunil Dutt who spoke openly about seeking help from him
Shiv Sena
Supreme
Bal Thackeray
When his son was arrested under TADA and Arms Act.During his appearance on Rajat Sharma’s ‘Aap Ki Adalat’ show, Sunil Dutt spoke candidly about the difficult period and explained why he approached Bal Thackeray despite his ideological opposition to the politics of the Shiv Sena.At the time, Maharashtra was ruled by an alliance of Shiv Sena and BJP, and Sanjay Dutt was facing serious charges linked to illegal possession of weapons in the wake of the 1993 Mumbai bombings.Sunil Dutt revealed this actor
Rajendra Kumar
He advised him to meet Bal Thackeray for help.“Bal Thackeray ji is my old friend. I have known him ever since I entered politics. He respects me and I respect him,” Sunil Dutt said on the programme.Explaining why he approached the Shiv Sena chief, the veteran actor said it was a practical decision as Thackeray had influence in the state government at that time.“At that time, it was his government. You may remember that he himself used to say that he had the remote control.
He explained that if someone had the key and the remote, the person would naturally go for it.Sunil Dutt also compared the situation to transporting a sick child to the appropriate specialist.“If my son gets sick, I will take him to a doctor. If there is a political problem, I will go to a politician. This is the reason,” he said.
“I did not give up on my principles.”
During the conversation, Rajat Sharma asked Sunil Dutt whether taking help from Bal Thackeray was tantamount to compromising his principles, especially since he had always been openly opposed to communal politics.However, the actor vehemently denied compromising his ethics.“No, definitely not. If I had joined the Shiv Sena because they helped my son, it would have compromised my principles,” he replied.Sunil Dutt also pointed out that he later contested the elections against Shiv Sena candidates, which proved that there was no political deal.“She ran against her own candidates, not once, but twice,” he said.He also clarified that Bal Thackeray never imposed any conditions on him in return for helping Sanjay Dutt.“He never asked me not to contest elections or put any condition before me. Small-minded people think like that. Bal Thackeray was not like that,” Sunil Dutt added.
Sunil Dutt talks about Sanjay Dutt’s turbulent phase
During the same interview, Sunil Dutt also spoke emotionally about Sanjay Dutt’s difficult teenage years, drug addiction and the trauma of losing his mother Nargis just days before the release of his 1981 debut film ‘Rocky’.The veteran actor admitted that Sanjay was very close to his mother and was struggling to cope with her death.“He was very close to his mother and she was very close to him. He couldn’t deal with her death,” Sunil Dutt said.Recalling the heartbreaking days before Nargis’ death, Sunil Dutt revealed that she desperately wanted to attend the premiere of Sanjay’s film despite her deteriorating health.“She kept saying, ‘I’ll definitely go and watch my son’s premiere.’ ”
We arranged an ambulance, wheelchair and everything. But she died on May 3, while the premiere was on May 7.Sunil Dutt said Sanjay was emotionally shattered and conflicted at that time.“He was a little boy. He didn’t know whether to cry or celebrate because his first movie had been released,” he said.
“People in the underworld know me too.”
Sunil Dutt also addressed long-standing perceptions about Sanjay Dutt’s alleged underworld links and candidly admitted that he himself knew many underworld figures socially, like many people in the film industry at that time.“Why should I lie? Mastan was a very good friend of mine. Karim Lala was my friend too,” he admitted.However, he explained that there is a difference between social interaction and criminal involvement.He explained: “If an artist starts helping them with smuggling or crime, that is wrong. But moviegoers would meet everyone socially. They would also attend movie parties.”
