In a bid to strike an emotional chord with the people of the city, SP nominee from this Lok Sabha seat and Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt on Wednesday visited members of a family that had given shelter to his father Sunil Dutt 60 years back.
In a bid to strike an emotional chord with the people of the city, SP nominee from this Lok Sabha seat and Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt on Wednesday visited members of a family that had given shelter to his father Sunil Dutt 60 years back.
"Being here and with this family is bit nostalgic for me. I am feeling happy," said Dutt, who was flanked by his wife Manyata, SP leader Amar Singh and the members of his extended family.
ADVERTISEMENT
"My father used to say that this is your family, but I could not find a chance to come and meet them. As my elder brother Amar Singh lives here, I finally got a chance to meet them. Now I feel that I have a family in Lucknow as well," he said.
During his 20-minutes stay at Capt Sinkander Rizvi's flat at Joppling Road, Dutt shared some emotional moments with the family, even as considerable number of fans waited outside the building for a glimpse of the actor. The Bollywood star had visited the state capital last time on January 17 after being named as the candidate from here.
When asked why it took him 45 years to visit the family, Dutt said, "In between I was working and then was in jail."
The family showed the Bollywood star his parents' photograph, along with a letter written by Sunil Dutt to an elderly member of the family immediately after Sanjay's birth.
"My father and mother used to say that we all are Hindustanis first, we are not Hindus or Muslims. The family gave a lot of love and affection to my father and I have learnt a lot from them (parents) and every Indian should learn this lesson," Dutt said.
The elderly women of the family gave some gifts to Manyata, who said she felt very good after visiting the family. "I am very happy and feeling very good at this moment".
Amar Singh explained Munnabhai's city connections. "When Sunil Dutt came to this city after partition, this was the family which provided him shelter and bread. Those were the troubled times when riots were going. To protect him, they gave Sunil a pseudo name Akhtar".
"People often ask what relation did Sanjay has with this city. I say he shares a relation of emotion and love. The connection is that of "HuM" (Hindu and Muslim). Sunil was a Hindu and Nargis was a Muslim and they were an ideal couple. Incidentally, Sanjay too is a Hindu and Manyata a Muslim. They are the identity of Hindustan," Singh said.
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
