Being Rajkumar Hirani
	July 21, 2006 His latest film has got the country buzzing, but Raju Hirani can still get away on Mumbai streets without being mobbed. The mastermind of the Munnabhaiseries of films is described by most of the people who know him as a nice person, like the people in his films. Anuradha SenGupta: What everybody seems to be talking about you is the fact you have managed to take somebody who has dominated and loomed so large over our history books and put him into popular culture. I want you to go back now and de-construct for us exactly how this film happened for you. Rajkumar Hirani: I was actually working on a script, which was about a 17-year-old boy in 1947, who has an encounter with Bapu and his life certainly changes and he becomes a big believer in Bapu’s ways. And two days later he was hit by a baton of a British soldier and goes into coma. Fifty years later, when the nation is independent, Bapu is dead, he comes out of coma. There is a joy that he sees an independent country, but also there were also sorrow that is this country we have fought for? So the plot was interesting but it was becoming a grim film. So, in one of the walks that I take in the morning I was wondering how do I make it entertaining and still I say what I wanted to say. Just as a thought, I said what if Munnabhai supposed to be that 17-year-old man? But he can’t be like that. Then I thought if Munnabhai meets Mahatma Gandhi somewhere. So, that was the origin of that thought. Anuradha SenGupta: When I saw Munnabhai MBBS and then when I see Lage Raho Munnabhai - which incidentally I saw sitting on a stool, because it was difficult to get a ticket, but I had to see it before I met you - that the basic approach to life, which you show in both the films, which is do good, be good, feel kind, take time out to relate to each other. Is this your philosophy? Rajkumar Hirani: Hundred per cent. I do believe strongly in that, I aspire to be that, I am not 100 per cent there, I am remotely close there. Anuradha SenGupta: How do you get this balanced? A lot of laughter and constantly being inter-balanced with these moist eyes. How does it go? Because you are also an editor, I mean that’s how you started your career! Rajkumar Hirani: A lot of editing actually took place at the script table. I purely go by my gut feeling.