‘Vaastav: The Reality,’ directed by Mahesh Manjrekar released in 1999, and Sanjay Dutt played the role of Raghunath “Raghu” Namdev Shivalkar in the action thriller film. Actor Sanjay Dutt has now confirmed that a sequel to his iconic film ‘Vaastav’ is currently in development.During the launch event for ‘Khalnayak Returns’ on April 24, 2026, Sanjay Dutt officially confirmed he is producing a sequel to the cult classic ‘Vaastav’. When a journalist followed up by asking if he had other legendary characters slated for a comeback, the actor responded. Read on for more information.
Sanjay Dutt on ‘Vaastav 2‘
According to News18, eesponding to the question on upcoming plans, Sanjay Dutt revealed that the sequel is actively being worked on. He also addressed the possibility of another installment in the popular Munna Bhai franchise. “We are working on Vaastav 2. As for Munna Bhai, you’ll have to ask Rajkumar Hirani. Raju, please make Munna Bhai again!” His request for another Munna Bhai film has once again revived discussions around the beloved franchise.
Subhash Ghai recalls casting story
As reported by The New Indian Express, filmmaker Subhash Ghai shared an interesting anecdote about casting Sanjay in Khalnayak. “When I started working on Khalnayak, the news spread in the industry. Many stars met with me and expressed interest in doing the film. But I told them, ‘I have an actor in mind already’. I invited Sanju and narrated the story. He told me, ‘Sir, I trust you. We are doing this film’.”The film went on to become one of the defining releases of the 1990s. It featured Sanjay Dutt as the iconic Ballu, alongside Madhuri Dixit and Jackie Shroff.
‘Khalnayak 2’ idea from jail days
Sanjay Dutt also shared how the idea for ‘Khalnayak Returns’ first came to him during his time in jail in the 1990s. “I got the thought of making Khalnayak part 2 in jail (smiles). I used to play music inside the prison. The inmates used to insist only on the songs of Khalnayak. I asked them, ‘Agar Khalnayak phir se banaye, toh kaun dekhna chahega? (If Khalnayak is remade, who would like to see it).’ All 4000 prisoners said in unison that they would love to see it. I told them, ‘Send me a one-pager idea of the film.’ It took me a lot of time to read 4000 pages! One of the ideas that I got appealed to me.”Dutt further added, “I was out on parole, and I called sir (Subhash Ghai). I narrated that idea to him. Subhash ji also got excited, and he said ‘Banni chahiye.’”Sanjay Dutt was recently seen in ‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge’.