An archive of Hindi movie reviews and ratings from 2010 to 2020.

Critic reviews and ratings

  • ...is an entertaining saga that blends emotions, humour and drama in adequate doses. It is powerful, engaging, emotional as well as compelling.

    89

    Critic rating (?)

  • Hirani, in his signature style, takes you through Sanju's remarkable journey with the finesse and commitment it needs.

    79

    Critic rating (?)

  • It’s a reexamination of the life of one of our most controversial film stars and Rajkumar Hirani has made every episode seem as real as it could get. But the treatment is such that you don’t end up feeling like you’ve watched a news documentary. Humour is both Hirani’s sword and shield and he has used it well.

    79

    Critic rating (?)

  • Frankly you don’t need to be a fan or a friend or family member of Sanjay Dutt to invest emotionally in this film. Even if you have a vicarious bent of mind (which most of have) you will take away a lot from Sanju.

    79

    Critic rating (?)

  • ...is the film that it is because of the infectious energy Ranbir Kapoor injects into the film. An absolute must-watch.

    79

    Critic rating (?)

  • Given the kind of biopics we have seen in commercial mainstream Bollywood so far, Sanju has definitely raised the bar. Watch Sanju for Ranbir Kapoor, Rajkumar Hirani, the laughs, the tears... in a nutshell, everything.

    79

    Critic rating (?)

  • Under Hirani's light touch and unwavering optimism, the darkness of Dutt's life filled with too many misdemeanours to be overlooked as miscalculation, acquires the spirit of a sportsman, grit of a soldier, humour of a rascal and regrets of a son.

    79

    Critic rating (?)

  • An engaging 2.5+ hours with a film that might as well have been titled Sanju ke baba or anti-medianama. Enjoyed it better by not thinking of him as Sanjay Dutt but more as a shameless, callous, blame-shifter manbaby.

    69

    Critic rating (?)

  • Unsurprisingly, this one effectively carves him as a victim of circumstance, an addict of compulsion and as someone who was wronged by media reports and the public at large. But it also evens it out by presenting the actor as an unreliable boyfriend, a failure-of-a-son and a washed up actor who was notoriously unprofessional.

    69

    Critic rating (?)

  • It’s a consistently engaging film that makes its way to your heart even though the head frequently resists.

    69

    Critic rating (?)

  • ...the film is engaging and enjoyable but it definitely tries to clear the image of Sanjay Dutt.

    59

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  • ...glaring hiccups in an otherwise watchable and frankly, very enjoyable film. Just don't hope for a warts-and-all biopic.

    59

    Critic rating (?)

  • While the subject is starkly different, Hirani's sticks to the treatment that comes naturally to him. This is a film that is intensely Bollywood and in love with the industry, the approach is a strange concoction of melodrama, parody and comedy.

    59

    Critic rating (?)

  • It’s a warts-and-all film that hedges its bets: Sanju baba is rarely kept apart from the viewer’s sympathy.

    49

    Critic rating (?)

  • As director, Hirani, faced an uphill task in bringing back all those memories in their truest form in Sanju. Hirani does it the way Hirani can, by bringing in the humour and heart in almost every sequence, even the serious ones.

    49

    Critic rating (?)

  • ...is an entertaining film, and has all the elements of a blockbuster — but one wishes the honesty and nuance went beyond just the performances.

    49

    Critic rating (?)

  • ...is mostly engaging, and some of it good enough to make you laugh out loud in pleasure, especially when Hirani is killing it. But you wonder too what the film chose to leave out, and you wonder if this would have been more of a film if those things had been in here.

    49

    Critic rating (?)

  • Ultimately, the film is not as much about the flaws in the hero as about him being wronged by the media which is yet a convenient villain.

    49

    Critic rating (?)

  • It promises complexity and psychological acuity. Until a point, it appears to be on track to creating a nuanced portrait of controversy’s favourite child – but then it plummets into unquestioning and misty-eyed reverence.

    39

    Critic rating (?)

  • This is a work of fiction masquerading as a biopic. And Rajkumar Hirani may have violins standing by to manipulate emotions, and he has Ranbir Kapoor mimicking Sanjay Dutt's mannerisms, but the movie remains a vanilla version of a life full of violence induced by drugs, guns, bad company and women.

    39

    Critic rating (?)

  • The object of the film is two-fold: to project Dutt as a misguided but well-intentioned man and all-round nice guy, and to scapegoat others for his failings.

    39

    Critic rating (?)

  • Hirani is more interested in event and entertainment. He transforms a feel-bad life into a feel-good story.

    39

    Critic rating (?)

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