It’s hard to imagine a time when ‘Munna Bhai MBBS’ wasn’t a beloved hit. But in a recent interview, veteran filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra revealed that the film was actually rejected by many people, especially distributors in South India, before it became a blockbuster and made him rich.
Chopra, known for backing meaningful and entertaining cinema, opened up about the early struggles the film faced.
Speaking with ‘Screen’, he said that when ‘Munna Bhai MBBS’ was ready for release back in 2003, there was almost no interest from distributors outside Mumbai.
“’Munna Bhai MBBS’ opened to empty theatres,” Chopra said. “It is the film that made me wealthy in the long run, but that’s only because nobody wanted to buy it outside of Mumbai. I had a distributor in South India who had agreed to buy the film for ₹11 lakh. Back then, they used to physically come and take the print before release. But when he came to collect it, he watched the film and said, ‘Sir, this movie won’t work for even a single day. People outside Mumbai won’t understand the language or the humour.’”
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Left without a proper release plan in the South, Vidhu Vinod Chopra had to rely on help from friends. He recalled how two of his well-wishers, Shyam and Bala Shroff, gave him a chance. He managed to get just one morning show in a Chennai cinema, an 11 a.m. slot that no one expected would perform well.
“I sold my print there for ₹5 lakh,” Chopra said. “And just from that one cinema in Chennai, the film eventually did business of over ₹1 crore.”
He emphasized that good work always finds its way. “No one came on day one or day two,” he said. “But when you create something honest and good, it pays off, sooner or later.”
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Released in 2003, ‘Munna Bhai MBBS’ marked the directorial debut of Rajkumar Hirani and quickly became a cult classic. The film starred Sanjay Dutt as Munna Bhai, a lovable goon who tries to become a doctor to fulfill his father’s dreams. His father was played by none other than Sunil Dutt, Sanjay’s real-life father, in what would be his last film before passing away.
The film also featured Gracy Singh, Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani, Jimmy Sheirgill, and Rohini Hattangadi. It was inspired by the 1998 Hollywood film ‘Patch Adams’, which starred Robin Williams as a doctor.
What made ‘Munna Bhai MBBS’ stand out was its heartwarming message, its mix of comedy and emotion. The movie had unforgettable characters; especially Circuit, played by Arshad Warsi. It went on to become a massive success and later spawned a sequel, ‘Lage Raho Munna Bhai’, in 2006. It was also a huge hit.