‘Won’t Work’ Sanjay Dutt Starrer Munna Bhai Was Squarely REJECTED By South Distributors, Sold For Just 5 Lakh, Later Earned Over Rs…

Filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra recently opened up about the rocky journey of his now-iconic film Munna Bhai MBBS (2003). In a candid conversation on the latest episode of Creator x Creator on SCREEN, he revealed how the Sanjay Dutt starrer was initially rejected by a South Indian distributor and sold for just Rs 5 lakh. Ironically, the film went on to become one of the biggest hits in his career.

Munna Bhai MBBS Opened With Empty Theatres, Picked Up Later

Despite having a strong storyline and cast, Munna Bhai MBBS struggled to find buyers outside of Mumbai. Chopra shared, “Munna Bhai MBBS opened to empty theatres. Munna Bhai MBBS is the movie that made me rich, but that’s because nobody bought that film outside of Mumbai.” 

He recalled how a distributor from South India had initially agreed to buy the film for Rs 11 lakh, but backed out just days before the release.

Chopra shared, “When he saw the film, he said - Sir, this film won’t work even for a day. Nobody outside of Mumbai would get the language of Munna Bhai.” The film used Bambaiya, a street-style Mumbai dialect, which the distributor believed would not connect with audiences elsewhere.

Sanjay Dutt Starrer Was Sold In 5 Lakh, Made More Than Rs 1 Crore

Despite this setback, Chopra remained determined. He offered to return the Rs 5 lakh advance already paid by the distributor, but was asked to keep it as a deposit for a future film instead. Eventually, he managed to secure just one morning show at a cinema in Chennai and sold the film print for Rs 5 lakh. To everyone’s surprise, that single release went on to generate more than Rs 1 crore in business from the region.

Chopra said, “Nobody went to see the film the first day or the second day. But when you do good work, (it’ll pay).” He also explained why he does not rely too much on marketing. 

The filmmaker added, “Even 12th Fail started with Rs 10-30 lakh. It ran for seven months in cinemas in today’s time! Two months after it released, it was already on an OTT platform like Hotstar, yet people went into cinemas.”

Munna Bhai MBBS starred Sanjay Dutt as a local goon who decides to become a doctor to fulfil his father’s dream. The film also featured Arshad Warsi as the lovable sidekick Circuit. Directed by Rajkumar Hirani, the movie became a turning point in Hindi cinema and later spawned a successful sequel.

Chopra’s faith in good content continues to drive his work. His recent film 12th Fail (2023), starring Vikrant Massey, followed the journey of a UPSC aspirant and went on to earn over Rs 56 crore at the domestic box office. A documentary about the making of the film, Zero Se Restart, is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.