The news of Sanjay Dutt's release on bail has come as a relief to producers of Mr Fraud, Kidnap and Easy Monthly Instalment, Bollywood projects that were stuck because of the star's imprisonment.
"It is a very happy moment for us," says Dharam Oberoi, chief executive officer of Sanjay Dutt Productions, which the actor recently formed before being sentenced in the 1993 blasts case. Dutt had parted ways with his long term friend Sanjay Gupta's White Feather films and decided to move on his own.
His next film Dus Kahaniyan with Gupta will release on December 7.
The third part of Sanjay's hit Munnabhai series has also been planned, and the shooting is likely to begin soon.
When Dutt was in jail and rediff.com asked Arshad Warsi, who played Dutt's lovable sidekick Circuit in the series, if there would be a third Munnabhai, he said, "A 100 per cent yes! No doubt about it. We were always going to make a third film and nothing has changed that plan. But it might take some time. We'll begin the filming process by the end of 2008. The film should be ready for release by late 2009. "
"Sanjay Dutt is one of the biggest stars of the industry," says film trade analyst Komal Nahta. "After Munnabhai, he has created a niche for himself.
"We have a shortage of heroes in our industry," Nahta continues, "and Dutt is one of the heroes whose name is big and has a massive fan following. The news (of him getting bail) is great for the industry."
