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Any chapter of Sunil Dutt’s life would make for a dramatic film, whether it was the time when he rescued his future wife from a fire on a film set, or when he walked 500 kilometres across Punjab to profess peace and harmony. He lost his wife, Nargis, to cancerand struggled for years trying to rid his son, Sanjay Dutt, of a drug addiction. He also embarked on a political career, slept on the footpath in early years in Mumbai, and spent the later part of his life trying to fight for his son, who found himself embroiled with the law and in jail. But he was shaped into the person he’d become in his youth. Born Balraj Dutt, he lived in the village of Khurd in present day Pakistan, and moved to India when he was just 18.
In an interview with Reader’s Digest, Dutt recalled witnessing the horrors of the Partition. “It was horrible,” he said. “At a refugee camp in Ambala, I saw people mourning over a dead body while only a few metres away, a marriage ceremony was taking place.” In the final interview of his life, he told Rediff that he was rescued by a Muslim man during the Partition. “My entire family was saved by a Muslim. His name was Yakub — a friend of my father’s who lived a mile-and-a-half away from our village. He helped us escape to the main city, Jhelum.”
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Dutt’s father had died when he was just five, and he had to cross over into India with his mother and two siblings. But they were separated, leaving Dutt fearing for the worst. He told Doordarshan in an interview, “Alag Alag Campo Me Main Dhoondta Raha Apni Maa Ko, Mera Chota Bhai, Meri Choti Behen Aur Tab Maine Soch Liya Ki Shayad Unka Bhi Wahi Wahi Wahi Wahi Jo Aur Loogon Ka Hai (In different camps, I kept searching for my mother, my younger brother, my younger sister. And I thought that perhaps she must have gone through the same fate as many others).”
Sanjay Dutt and Sunil Dutt at Nargis’ funeral. (Photo: Express Archive)
He added, “Main Ambale Me Tha To Ek Tanga Mere Paas Se Guzaraa Toh Usme Se Awaaz Aayi, to Maine Kaha Yahan Yahan Kaun Janta Hai Mujhe, Toh Itne Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Me Mein Par Wo Tange Me Wahan Par Tange Me Jahaha (I was in Ambala when a horse cart passed by me. I heard a voice saying, Balraj. I said, Who here knows me as Balraj? It was a relative of mine on the horse cart).”
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The relative took him along to an uncle of his, who’d become a police officer in Ambala. “Toh Maine kaha tum kaise aagye wahan se, kehte hain, hum to aagye mera jo uncle hai woh sps ban gaya hai yahan ambala ka, toh chalu unki kothi me chalte hain. Toh hum bali saheb ke kothi meub gaye (I asked him, how did you come from there? He said, I came from there and my uncle has become the SP of Ambala. I went to his house),” Dutt said. Little did he know that he was in for the most pleasant surprise of his life. He continued, “Jab main tange se utara to maine saamne dekha ki meri maa khadi hai, Wahi Maile Kuchale Kapde Pehne Hue, Jo Kayi Mahino Se Dhoye Nahhi Honge Unhone, Mera Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhai Bhara khada hai, meri behen khadi hui hai (When I got down from the tonga, I saw my mother standing in front of me. She was wearing a dirty dress, which must not have been washed for many months. My brother was wearing shorts. My sister was standing with them).”
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Dutt returned to his ancestral village years later, when he was in his 60s. In the Rediff interview, he recalled his interactions with the locals, all of whom remembered him and his family. “There were television channels (present). The villagers were asked why they were giving me so much affection. They replied, ‘It is not because of him. It is because of his forefathers who lived here and gave us so much respect. They were fine people and respected our religion. They were landlords. There is a dargah at the outskirts of our village. When they (Sunil Dutt’s forefathers) neared the dargah, they would alight from their horses, walk on foot till they went past the dargah, and then get back on their horses. They gave us so much respect. Why wouldn’t we respect them?’”
Sunil Dutt was honoured with a Padma Shri in the year 1968. He died at the age of 75 in the year 2005.
