No holds barred

Bollywood’s Munna Bhai Sanjay Dutt talks life in prison, drug addiction and more.

At a recent event in Delhi, Bollywood’s Munna Bhai Sanjay Dutt took the opportunity to talk about his arrest, life in prison, and his journey through substance abuse. The actor took the stage for a 15-minute session but ended talking for over an hour, reported Times of India.

Referring to his time in jail, Dutt said “When I was in prison, it was very difficult time for dad, Priya [sister] and me. She came to meet me on Rakhi and I gave her the coupons that I collected in jail.”

He added, “In the Pune jail, there are flies all over, billions of flies, in your hair, in your clothes and even in your food.” During his time in jail, Dutt began reading up on religion. “In jail I read Ramayan, Bhagwad Gita, Shiv Puran, Ganesh Puran, the Bible and the Quran. Now, I can sit and talk to any moulvi or priest and make sense.”

Interestingly, Dutt disclosed his children still don’t know that he was in jail and instead thought he was shooting in the mountains for an upcoming film. “When I was in jail, it was very difficult for me to not see my children for three years.” However, he didn’t want his children to see his condition in prison.

“I didn’t want them to see me in torn clothes and the topi. I didn’t want them to live with that image. I used to speak to them twice a month. I told tell them that I was shooting in the mountains and didn’t have proper connection. That’s what they know even today.”

Asked when he started doing hard-core drugs, Dutt stated “My journey with substance abuse has been about 12 years. There are no drugs in the world that I have not done.

When my father took me to America for rehab, they gave me a list of drugs and I ticked every drug on it, because I had taken all of them. The doctor told my dad, ‘What kind of food do you eat in India? Going by the drugs he did, he should be dead by now!’”

However, he eventually realised there was more to life than these lethal habits. “I didn’t leave drugs because of my family. I left because I wanted to be out of it.”

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10^th, 2016.

Like Life & Style on Facebook, follow @ETLifeandStyle on Twitter for the latest in fashion, gossip and entertainment.