Having stepped out of his comfort zone in recent outings, Sanjay Dutt explains why he has returned to his favourite genre with Prasthanam
Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; September 7, 2019)

Counted among the original macho men of Bollywood, Sanjay Dutt tried to steer away from the action hero image in his last few outings. If Kalank saw him try his hand at an emotional drama, the thriller, Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3 (2018), was far removed from the star's brand of cinema. However, his attempt to step out of his comfort zone was met with little success. With his home production Prassthanam, Dutt tells mid-day that he wants to regain his credibility as an action star.

"I played a father in Bhoomi [2017]. In the climax courtroom sequence, the audience expected me to bash up the villains [and were disappointed when it didn't happen]. In Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3, my fans complained that the gangster element was missing from my role. There is a certain image that I have of an action star; it's difficult to break it and do something else. It's difficult to reinvent. If people love me for my macho roles, it is my responsibility to give them that. Prassthanam has everything that the audience expects me to do," he explains.

In his second innings in Bollywood, Dutt is keen to go beyond his role as an actor. His desire to back meaningful cinema has led to the creation of his studio, Sanjay S Dutt Productions. "We decided to back Prassthanam because it's a great film that provides entertainment. We chose politics as the backdrop as we wanted to target the heartland of the country," says the actor-producer, who forayed into production with an unlikely choice — the Marathi film, Baba. "It will be screened for the jury of the Golden Globes on September 14. We hope they nominate it [for the awards]. We are making a small Punjabi film, and a few Hindi films are in the pipeline. The aim is to make content-driven cinema without losing out on entertainment."