DISCLAIMER: This article contains references to cancer and the actor’s medical journey.Sanjay Dutt is one such Bollywood star who has faced many ups and downs in life, a journey so dramatic that much of it was shown in his biopic ‘Sanju’. He has never shied away from speaking about the most difficult and vulnerable chapters of his life. Among the hardest was his cancer diagnosis, a moment that left him shaken and emotional. The ‘Vaastav’ actor once opened up about how he dealt with this shocking news and found the strength to face it.
Sanjay’s cancer was diagnosed during the lockdown period
Speaking to YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia on his podcast in the past, the ‘Khalnayak’ actor revealed that he was diagnosed during the lockdown and initially struggled to process the news.He said, “It was a normal day in the lockdown. When I walked up the stairs, I was totally out of breath. I had a bath, I couldn’t breathe, I didn’t know what was happening, so I called up my doctor. In the x-ray, more than half of my lungs were covered in water. They had to tap the water out. They all were hoping it was TB (tuberculosis) but it turned out to be cancer.”
Sanjay cried for hours thinking about family
Sanjay shared how overwhelmed he felt after hearing the diagnosis. He explained, “How to break it to me, it was a big issue. I could have broken somebody’s face. So, my sister came, I was like, ‘Okay, I’ve got cancer, now what?’. Then you start planning this, we’ll do this and that… But I did cry for two-three hours because I was thinking about my kids and my life and my wife and everything, these flashes come and I said, I am going to stop getting weak. First, we decided (to seek treatment in the US), but didn’t get the visa, so I said, I’ll do it here.”
Family and Rakesh Roshan helped plan his cancer treatment
The ‘Saajan’ actor explained how his family organised his treatment and how Rakesh Roshan, father of Hrithik Roshan, recommended a doctor.He added, “They told me that I’d lose hair and other things would happen, I’d vomit, so I told the doctor ‘mereko kuch nahi hoga’, I’ll not lose hair, I’ll not vomit, I won’t lie on the bed, and she kind of smiled. I did my chemotherapy, and I came back and I sat on that bike for one hour and I cycled, I did that day after day, everyday. After every chemo (session) I did that. It was crazy, I used to go for chemo, Dubai, and then I used to go to the badminton court and play for two-three hours.”
Dutt used fitness to regain his old self
The ‘Agneepath’ actor revealed how he challenged cancer by taking up fitness and slowly regaining his strength. He explained that the only way to fight the disease was by challenging it. Sharing his progress, he said it had been two months since he started going to the gym, where he had lost weight, regained muscle, and was slowly returning to his old self. He added that he wanted to bring back the Sanjay Dutt everyone knew and admitted that while he had once let himself go, he would not do so again.
Sanjay announced he is cancer-free in 2020
In October 2020, Sanjay Dutt announced that he was cancer-free, much to the joy of his fans and well-wishers. He credited his recovery to his own resilience and the support of his family.
Sanjay Dutt’s film projects
On the work front, Sanjay Dutt’s recent film ‘Baaghi 4’ starring Tiger Shroff released in cinemas on September 5, 2025. His next film, the Ranveer Singh-starrer ‘Dhurandhar’, is slated for release in December 2025.
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