Rajkumar Hirani | |
---|---|
Born | [1] Nagpur, Maharashtra, India | 20 November 1962
Other names | Raju |
Alma mater | Film and Television Institute of India |
Occupations | |
Years active | 1993–present |
Spouse | Manjeet Hirani |
Children | Vir Hirani [2] |
Awards | Full list |
Rajkumar "Raju" Hirani (born 20 November 1962) is an Indian filmmaker known for his works in Hindi films. He is the recipient of several accolades, including four National Film Awards and 11 Filmfare Awards. Hirani is referred as one of the most successful filmmakers of Indian cinema. [3] His movies are often lighthearted but revolve around significant societal issues with humour and emotional intelligence.
Starting his career as a film editor after graduating from FTII in editing, a bad experience forced him to shift to ad films, where he made several successful ads. His first film as a professional editor was Vidhu Vinod Chopra's action drama Mission Kashmir (2000). Although Hirani wanted to make films, he took a one-year break and came back with the script of the comedy-drama Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. to Chopra to help him finance it, who agreed. Upon release, the film emerged as a widespread critical and commercial success. It won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment and the Filmfare Award for Best Film (Critics) and earned Hirani the Filmfare Award for Best Screenplay and his first nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Director.
After the success of MBBS, he helmed its sequel Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), which emerged as the second-highest grosser of the year and the coming-of-age comedy-drama 3 Idiots (2009) emerged as the highest grossing Indian film of its time. Both of them won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment and were nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, with 3 Idiots, winning all three categories. His next film, the science fiction religious satire PK (2014), again emerged as the highest-grossing Indian film of its time and the biographical comedy-drama Sanju (2018) based on the life of actor Sanjay Dutt released to critical and commercial success. Both films were nominated for Best Film and Best Director at the Filmfare Awards, with PK winning him the Best Screenplay. Domestically, both films are currently the fifth and seventh highest grossing Bollywood films. [4] He is the founder of the production house Rajkumar Hirani Films. His latest film is Dunki , starring Shah Rukh Khan was released theatrically on 21 December 2023 with mixed reviews.
Hirani was born on 20 November 1962 in Nagpur to a Sindhi family. His ancestors originally belonged to Mehrabpur, a city now in the Naushahro Firoz District, Sindh, of Pakistan. [5] His father Suresh Hirani ran a typing institute in Nagpur. Hirani studied at St. Francis De'Sales High School, Nagpur, Maharashtra. He did his graduation in commerce. His parents wanted him to be an engineer, but he was more keen on theatre and film. [6]
In his college days, he was involved with Hindi theatre. He had many friends in Nagpur's medical college and hence, spent much time in theatre at the college. Suresh had his son's photographs taken and sent him to an acting school in Mumbai. However, Hirani could not fit in and returned to Nagpur after three days. His father then asked him to apply to the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune, but the acting course had shut down and his chances of admission to the directorial course looked slim as there were far too many applicants. [7] Hirani opted for the film editing course, and earned a scholarship. [8]
Hirani tried his luck as a film editor for many years. Bad experiences forced him to shift to television advertising, [9] and he gradually established himself as a director and producer of advertising films. He was also seen in a Fevicol ad where some men and elephants were trying to pull and break a Fevicol plank, saying "Jor laga ke Haisha". [10] He was also seen in the Kinetic Luna ad campaign created by Ogilvy & Mather.
He was doing fairly well in the advertising industry, but he wanted to make movies, so he took a break from advertisement and started working with Vidhu Vinod Chopra. He worked on promos and trailers for Chopra's patriotic romance 1942: A Love Story (1994). [11] He edited promotions for Chopra's romance Kareeb (1998). [12] He got his first opportunity as a film editor with Chopra's action drama Mission Kashmir (2000). [13]
Hirani made his directorial debut with the comedy-drama Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. (2003) starring Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani, Gracy Singh, Jimmy Sheirgill and Sunil Dutt in lead roles. The first film of the Munna Bhai film series, it revolved around the titular protagonist (played by Dutt), a goon going to a medical school who is helped by his sidekick, Circuit (played by Warsi). The film received positive reviews from critics upon release, with particular praise for Hirani's direction and screenplay. It emerged as a commercial success at the box-office, with a worldwide total of ₹330 million (US$4.0 million), ranking as the eighth highest-grossing Hindi film of the year. Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment and the Filmfare Award for Best Film (Critics), and earned Hirani his first Filmfare Award for Best Screenplay and his first nomination for Best Director.
In 2006, Hirani directed the second installment of the Munna Bhai franchise, titled Lage Raho Munna Bhai , which retained some of the original cast, including Sanjay Dutt, Warsi, and Boman Irani, and added Vidya Balan as the female lead replacing Gracy Singh. The film proved to be Hirani's highest-grossing release to that point, grossing ₹1.2 billion (US$14 million) worldwide, ranking as the third highest-grossing film of the year. Just like the previous instalment, it won Hirani his second National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment, his second Filmfare Award for Best Film (Critics), his first Filmfare Award for Best Story and Best Dialogue, and his second nomination for Best Director.
Hirani's next directorial venture was the coming-of-age comedy-drama 3 Idiots (2009), loosely adapted from the novel Five Point Someone by Chetan Bhagat. Starring an ensemble cast of Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor Khan, R. Madhavan, Sharman Joshi, and Boman Irani, it follows the friendship of three engineering students, and was a satire about social pressures under an Indian education system. 3 Idiots received widespread critical acclaim upon release, and emerged as the highest-grossing Indian film up until then, earning ₹4.60 billion (US$55 million) in global ticket sales. Hirani won his third National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment, his first Filmfare Award for Best Film and Best Director, and his second Filmfare Award for Best Story and Best Screenplay. 3 Idiots established Hirani as one of Hindi cinema's most prominent filmmakers.
After a 5-year hiatus, Hirani returned to direction with the science fiction satirical comedy drama PK (2014). Upon release, the film received positive reviews, with praise directed towards Aamir Khan's performance and the film's humour, though certain criticism was received for "hurting religious sentiments". It received 8 nominations at the 60th Filmfare Awards, winning two. Additionally, it won five Producers Guild Film Awards, and two Screen Awards. PK garnered the Telstra People's Choice Award at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. Produced on a budget of ₹850 million (approx. $12 million), PK was the first Indian film to gross more than ₹ 7 billion and US$100 million worldwide. At the time, it emerged as the highest-grossing Indian film of all time and ranks as the 70th highest-grossing film of 2014 worldwide. The film's final worldwide gross was ₹ 854 crore (US$140 million). It currently stands as the 5th highest-grossing Indian film worldwide and 7th highest-grossing film in India.
He also directed the biographical drama Sanju (2018). The film follows the life of actor Sanjay Dutt (one of Hirani's closest collaborators), his addiction to drugs, arrest for alleged association with the 1993 Bombay bombings, relationship with his father, comeback in the industry, the eventual drop of charges from Bombay blasts, and release after completing his jail term. Upon release, it received generally positive reviews from critics and was praised for Ranbir Kapoor's performance; some criticised its image-cleansing of its protagonist. With a worldwide gross of ₹586.85 crore (US$70 million), Sanju ranks as the highest grossing Hindi film of 2018, the fifth highest-earning Hindi film in India of all time, and one of the highest-grossing Indian films. Sanju earned seven nominations at the 64th Filmfare Awards, including Best Film and Best Director for Hirani. It won two; Best Actor for Kapoor (who played Dutt) and Best Supporting Actor for Kaushal.
Hirani directed Dunki (2023), a comedy-drama film on immigration produced by himself and Red Chillies Entertainment (with whom he is working with for the first time) and written by him and Joshi. [14]
When someone says to me, ‘Our minds are preconditioned to believe things, and you gave us a different viewpoint to think,’ I feel like I’ve done something worthy.
— Hirani on his films.[ citation needed ]
Hirani's films are often based on themes that explore particularly different critical social issues like middle-class aspirations, reforms, self-conviction and relationships, albeit with healthy humour and an immense emotional quotient. Hirani is the editor of all of his films; he has himself admitted that he enjoys editing films more than anything else. [15] Rajeev Masand wrote, in a review, "[L]ike those good old-fashioned Hrishikesh Mukherjee films, [Rajkumar] Hirani's film reinforced importance of human goodness and basic niceties". [16] Hirani cites Mukherjee's Anand (1971) as his favourite film.
Munna Bhai MBBS (2003) deals with the corruption of hospitals and the cruelty of doctors, Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006) deals with Gandhi's thinking and reforming people with soft-hearted behaviour, 3 Idiots (2009) with the education system, pressure on students for marks and passion of individuals, PK (2014) with religion and superstition and Sanju (2018) with relationships and media outrage. [17] Film critic Komal Nahta called Hirani "a magician more than a director" while reviewing Sanju, adding that he "narrates the complex story of a misdirected, ignorant, and foolish young man with such sensitivity that the human drama becomes quite a masterpiece of a film." [18]
I believe in God and I believe in religion. But I am against any religion that instills fear. God is misused by many who wish to mint money by scaring people. I believe in the great Hindu principle: 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' - the whole world is a family. Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, and indeed all religions, teach us brotherhood and love.
All of Hirani's films were co-produced by Vinod Chopra Films till Sanju, after which they broke their ties owing to creative differences. [21] He had edited one of Chopra's films Mission Kashmir (2000) professionally. Hirani has worked consistently with writer Abhijat Joshi since Lage Raho Munna Bhai, and has often cast the same actors in his projects, particularly Sanjay Dutt, who has collaborated with Hirani on three feature films and one film which itself is based on Dutt. Aamir Khan has collaborated on two films with Hirani, one also starring Dutt. Boman Irani has featured in all of Hirani's films in pivotal supporting roles.
Hirani is considered a pioneer of his own cinematic style. He has garnered appraisal from several industry's successful makers and his contemporaries like Karan Johar who said,
I've been pitted against everyone and I feel envious, not jealous. I am envious of Rajkumar Hirani. I've never managed to do what he does. His movies have genius ideas. I don't have the ability perhaps. I would love to make those kinds of movies. He has strong screenplays. I hope I get such screenplays. [22]
Director Anurag Kashyap called him the bravest filmmaker, he added: Generally, we filmmakers get into our subject to prove its poignancy so much that we end up making it less effective for the audience. But Raju didn't do that. [23]
SS Rajamouli said during the promotion of Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) that he is a huge fan of Hirani's films and that he "cannot make one scene the way [Rajkumar] Hirani does". [24]
Screenwriter Javed Akhtar praised Hirani's work saying,
"I am a huge admirer of Rajkumar Hirani. He does really good work and now again, he has done an amazing job. I always say one thing about him, that to make such kind of films, you not only have to be a really good director or writer, you have to be really a good human being as well. [25]
Hirani married Manjeet Hirani, a pilot in Air India, in 1994. They have a son, Vir Hirani, who is also pursuing filmmaking.
Year | Title | Director | Writer | Editor | Producer | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1991 | Jab Pyar Kiya to Darna Kya | No | No | Yes | No | |
1994 | Jazbaat | No | No | Yes | No | |
2000 | Mission Kashmir | No | No | Yes | No | |
2001 | Tere Liye | No | No | Yes | No | |
2003 | Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
2005 | Parineeta | No | No | No | Creative | |
2006 | Lage Raho Munna Bhai | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
2007 | Eklavya: The Royal Guard | No | No | No | Creative | |
2009 | 3 Idiots | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
2012 | Ferrari Ki Sawaari | No | Dialogues | Yes | Creative | |
2014 | PK | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
2016 | Irudhi Suttru | No | No | No | Yes | Bilingual film; Hindi version only |
2018 | Sanju | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
2023 | Dunki | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
The budgets and box-office figures are all estimates collated from various sources with reputed film portals. All values in Indian Rupees (₹) are converted to US Dollars ($) based on the average yearly exchange rate data from World Bank.
Year | Title | Budget (est.) | Box-office (est.) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Worldwide Gross | ||||
2003 | Munna Bhai MBBS | ₹10 crore (US$1.2 million) | ₹56.28 crore (US$6.7 million) | [26] [27] [28] |
2006 | Lage Raho Munna Bhai | ₹19 crore (US$2.3 million) | ₹126 crore (US$15 million) | [29] [30] |
2009 | 3 Idiots | ₹55 crore (US$6.6 million) | ₹400 crore (US$48 million) | [31] [32] |
2014 | PK | ₹85 crore (US$10 million) | ₹770 crore (US$92 million) | [33] [34] |
2018 | Sanju | ₹96 crore (US$12 million) | ₹586 crore (US$70 million) | [35] [36] |
2023 | Dunki | ₹120 crore (US$14 million) | ₹458.93 crore (US$55 million)–₹470.6 crore (US$56 million) | [37] |
Sunil Dutt was an Indian actor, film producer, director and politician. Dutt was honoured with Padma Shri, in 1968, by the Government of India, for his contribution to Indian cinema.
Vidhu Vinod Chopra is an Indian film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including four National Film Awards and eleven Filmfare Awards. He is known for directing films such as the crime drama Parinda (1989), the patriotic romantic drama 1942: A Love Story (1994), the action drama Mission Kashmir (2000) and the biographical drama 12th Fail (2023). He is also known for producing the Munna Bhai film series, 3 Idiots (2009), PK (2014), and Sanju (2018) under his banner Vinod Chopra Films.
Sanjay Balraj Dutt is an Indian actor, playback singer and film producer who works in Hindi cinema in addition to a few Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Punjabi films. One of the most popular and recognised actors of Hindi cinema, in a career spanning over four decades, Dutt has won several accolades and acted in over 135 films.
Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. is a 2003 Indian Hindi-language satirical comedy drama film written and directed by Rajkumar Hirani in his directorial debut and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the banner Vinod Chopra Films. It features Sunil Dutt in his final film role as the father to his real-life son, Sanjay Dutt, who stars as the titular character. Gracy Singh, Jimmy Sheirgill, Arshad Warsi, Rohini Hattangadi and Boman Irani also appear in the film.
The IIFA Award for Best Actor recognizes leading male actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role. The recipient is chosen by viewers and the winner is announced at the ceremony.
Boman Irani is an Indian actor, producer, filmmaker, photographer and voice artist who works in Hindi-language films in addition to Telugu, Tamil and Marathi films. One of the most popular character actors in Hindi cinema, he has featured in over 100 films. Irani is the recipient of a Filmfare Award and two IIFA Awards. Boman Irani has recently ventured into film production and advertising under his home banner, Irani Movietone.
Lage Raho Munna Bhai is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language satirical comedy drama film written, edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Abhijat Joshi, and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the banner Vinod Chopra Films. A sequel to Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. (2003), the film is the second installment of the Munna Bhai series. Sanjay Dutt and Arshad Warsi reprised their roles as Munna Bhai and Circuit, respectively. New additions to the cast include Vidya Balan, Dilip Prabhavalkar and Dia Mirza, while several actors from the original, notably Jimmy Sheirgill and Boman Irani, appear in new roles.
Gandhigiri is a neologism in India which is used to express the tenets of Gandhism in contemporary terms. The term became popular due to its usage in the 2006 Hindi film, Lage Raho Munna Bhai.
Murliprasad Sharma, better known as Munna Bhai, is an Indian fictional character who appears in the Munna Bhai film series. The character is created by Rajkumar Hirani and portrayed by Sanjay Dutt.
Abhijat Joshi is an Indian screenwriter, film director, producer and editor who works in Hindi cinema. His is known for collaboration with Vinod Chopra Productions and director Rajkumar Hirani, as the screenwriter for Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), 3 Idiots (2009), PK (2014) and Sanju (2018). He is a professor of English at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio, since 2003.
3 Idiots is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, co-written by Abhijat Joshi and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Adapted loosely from Chetan Bhagat's novel Five Point Someone, the film stars Aamir Khan, R. Madhavan and Sharman Joshi in the titular roles, marking their reunion three years after Rang De Basanti (2006), while Kareena Kapoor, Boman Irani and Omi Vaidya appear in pivotal roles. Narrated through two parallel dramas, one in the present and the other set ten years in the past, the story follows the friendship of three students at an Indian engineering college and is a satire about the social pressures under the Indian education system.
Ferrari Ki Sawaari is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language sports comedy drama film written and directed by Rajesh Mapuskar and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the production banners of Eros International and Vinod Chopra Films. The film was released in India on 15 June 2012 and stars an ensemble cast of Sharman Joshi, Boman Irani, Ritvik Sahore, Vidya Balan, Paresh Rawal, Seema Bhargava Pahwa, Deepak Shirke, Aakash Dabhade, Vijay Nikam, Nilesh Diwekar and Bhalchandra Kadam.
Sanjay Dutt is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi films as well as a few Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and Punjabi films. He made his acting debut in 1981, opposite Tina Ambani, in his father Sunil Dutt's romantic action film Rocky (1981). Rocky was ranked at tenth highest-grossing Bollywood films of 1981. After appearing in a series of box office flops, he starred in Mahesh Bhatt's crime thriller film Naam (1986). Dutt received critical acclaim for his performance, and it became a turning point in his career.
PK is a 2014 Indian Hindi-language science fiction comedy-drama film edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani and written by Hirani and Abhijat Joshi and jointly produced by Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the production banners of Rajkumar Hirani Films and Vinod Chopra Films, respectively. A religious satire, the film stars an ensemble cast of Aamir Khan, Anushka Sharma, Sushant Singh Rajput, Boman Irani, Saurabh Shukla and Sanjay Dutt.
Munna Bhai is an Indian Hindi-language film series created, written and directed by Rajkumar Hirani and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the Vinod Chopra Productions banner. It consists of Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., released in 2003, and its sequel, Lage Raho Munna Bhai, in 2006. The films share the same characters of Sanjay Dutt as Munna Bhai and Arshad Warsi as Circuit, with different plot elements and settings. Boman Irani features in each film as different characters. Both of the films received widespread critical acclaim and became huge commercial successes of their time.
Rajesh Mapuskar is an Indian film writer, director and producer. He got involved in the world of films at a very young age, as his family owned a cinema hall. He made his writing and directional debut with Ferrari Ki Sawaari (2012). Later, he wrote and directed the acclaimed Marathi language film Ventilator (2016), which won him several accolades, including the National Film Award for Best Director.
Sanju is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language biographical film directed and edited by Rajkumar Hirani, written by Hirani and Abhijat Joshi and produced by Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the banners Rajkumar Hirani Films and Vinod Chopra Films. The film chronicles the life of Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt, notably focusing his drug addiction, arrest for his suspected association with the 1993 Bombay bombings, relationship with his father, and acting career. Ranbir Kapoor stars as the title character, along with an ensemble supporting cast of Paresh Rawal, Vicky Kaushal, Manisha Koirala, Anushka Sharma, Dia Mirza and Jim Sarbh.
Sanju is the soundtrack to the 2018 film of the same name directed by Rajkumar Hirani, who co-wrote the screenplay with Abhijat Joshi and jointly produced with Vidhu Vinod Chopra under the banners Rajkumar Hirani Films and Vinod Chopra Films. Based on the life of Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt, the film stars Ranbir Kapoor as the titular character leading an ensemble supporting cast.