Bollywood not to rush for action

MUMBAI: Bollywood producers heaved a sigh of relief on Monday after the Supreme Court granted Sanjay Dutt interim bail. However, they have decided to keep the champagne on ice till the final verdict.

Nearly Rs 500 crore is riding on Dutt, if one takes into account the upcoming films and brand endorsements, and his sentencing last month had cast a big question mark over its future.

With the interim bail, pending projects such the Rs 50-crore home production with producer Sanjay Gupta, Alibaug; Sanjay Gadhvi’s Rs 35-crore Kidnap; and the Rs 35-crore Mehbooba, directed by Neeraj Vohra and co-starring Ajay Devgan may get priority.

Dutt will have to work overtime to complete them before a copy of the final judgement is delivered to him. There are also films like Mr Fraud, for which producers are unwilling to begin shooting until the final judgement is out, and it was clear how long the actor would remain out of jail.

“Even though he has got bail, much depends on what happens in the final judgement. After all, this is just an interim bail,” film trade analyst Taran Adarsh said. “Whether or not his projects will be completed depends on how long he is out on bail. He has some major projects like Abbas-Mustan’s next, and he would require some time before he can complete them,” he added.