Sanjay Dutt shared this picture. (courtesy: duttsanjay)
On Thursday, Sanjay Dutt shared a note about Shamshera's staggering box office response, and director Karan Malhotra and Ranbir Kapoor getting "hate" from the audience. The actor, who plays the antagonist Daroga Shuddh Singh in the film, wrote that Shamshera is a "labour of love" and that the film is made of "blood, sweat and tears." He addressed the failure of the film and talked about the hate it has received - "Shamshera found a lot of people hating on it; some of the hate came from people who didn't even watch it. I find it horrible that people don't respect the hard work we all put in."
He shared that director Karan Malhotra is one of the most hardworking directors he's worked with and stands by him during this time. "I admire Karan as a filmmaker, and mostly as a person. He is one of the best directors I have worked with in my long career of four decades. He has the knack of giving characters that strike a chord."
The actor referred to Karan's 2012 film, Agneepath, in which Sanjay Dutt played the antagonist Kancha Cheena. "We did that with Agneepath, where he gave me Kancha Cheena to play. The process of working on it was brilliant. He trusted me again with Shamshera and what a ball of a time we had making this film, and bringing to life Shuddh Singh. Karan is like family and success or failure aside, it will always be an honour to work with him. I stand by him always," an excerpt from the statement read.
Sanjay Dutt added that he stands resolute with the film and wrote, "Shamshera will find its tribe someday but until it does, I stand resolute with the film, the memories we created, the bond we shared, the laughs we had, the hardships we went through."
The KGF: Chapter 2 actor thanked the cast and crew for working on the project throughout the pandemic and gave a shout-out to Ranbir Kapoor, who also received hate for his performance. Shamshera is Ranbir's return to the big screen after Sanju (2018).
"I thank the whole unit - cast and crew of the film who stayed with the film for four years, through the pandemic, through my own personal rough times. Ranbir and I have forged a bond for life with this film. His craft and ability to depict emotionally on screen is par excellence. It pains to see how people are so eager to spew hatred on the work of one of the most hardworking and talented actors of our times," Sanjay Dutt wrote.
He concluded his note by writing that the love he feels for the film goes beyond hate. "Art and our commitment for it transcends the hate coming our way. The love we feel for the film and its people goes beyond everything that's being said. Baaki kuch toh log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna!" He ended with the hashtag #ShamsheraIsOurs.
Shamshera also stars Vaani Kapoor. Earlier today, director Karan Malhotra shared a note, apologizing for "abandoning" the film because he couldn't handle the "hate and rage" in the past few days. "I want to unimaginably apologise to you for abandoning you for these past few days as I could not handle the hate and rage. My withdrawal was my weakness and there are no excuses for it," he wrote.
Shamshera features Ranbir as a dacoit. Released on July 22, the film failed to impress the audience and the critics.