This film, rejected by Shah Rukh Khan, R Madhavan, Anil Kapoor, Vivek Oberoi, revived superstar's career, won 20 awards, made for just Rs 12 crores, it earned Rs..., movie was..

Sanjay Dutt, who made his acting debut with Rocky (1981), directed by his father, Sunil Dutt, has acted in over 160 films in his career so far. However, one of Sanjay Dutt's most memorable films, to this date, is none other than Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., a comedy-drama film that was released in 2003. Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. is responsible for reviving Sanjay Dutt's career, which suffered a major setback after his conviction in the 1993 Bombay bombings case. Directed by Rajkumar Hirani in his directorial debut and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. was a major critical and commercial success and gave wings to Sanjay Dutt's career, who never looked back after its release. 

Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. also features Sunil Dutt in his final film appearance as the father to his real-life son, Sanjay Dutt. Apart from the father-son duo, the film also starred Gracy Singh, Jimmy Sheirgill, Arshad Warsi, Rohini Hattangadi, and Boman Irani in pivotal roles. Made on a budget of Rs 12 crores, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. earned a whopping Rs 33 crores at the box office. It went on to win a total of 20 awards, including the 2004 National Film Award for Best Popular Film. 

Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. had a profound effect in reviving Sanjay Dutt's career and changing his 'bad boy' image, however, you will be surprised to know that the superstar wasn't the first choice of Rajkummar Hirani when he first got ready with the script. 

Rajkummar Hirani initially approached R Madhavan to play the lead role of Munna, however, he turned down the offer due to other commitments. Anil Kapoor and Vivek Oberoi were the other two actors who were approached, but things didn't pan out there as well. Rajkummar Hirani then shortlisted Shah Rukh Khan for the role of 'Munna' along with Sanjay Dutt as Zaheer, but even SRK backed out of the project due to his back problems. Ultimately, Sanjay Dutt took the role of Munna. The film's massive success helped change the public's perception of the controversial superstar.

At the box office, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. achieved a silver jubilee status (25-week run). It made history by being one of only eight Hindi films to have achieved Silver Jubilee status since 2000. Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. was followed by its sequel, Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), which also proved to be a major box-office success.

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