New Delhi: Ever wondered how Munnabhai MBBS of jado ki jhappi fame suddenly transformed into his Gandhigiri avatar? And do you know Munnabhai had a brief stint as an MD and also as an LLB before his tryst with Mahatma Gandhi?
By the way, we must also tell you that Munnabhai didn't really have any magical quality in his legal pursuits, so to say.
Bouyed by the resounding success of Munnabhai MBBS, when Producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Director Rajkumar Hirani were thinking of a sequel to the film, their first plan was to give him a career lift in the field of medicine itself, as an MD.
That was not to be! They seemed to have run out of ideas and the plan to produce Munnabhai MD was dropped because, as Hirani explained, it had looked like a mere business proposition and not quite like what they had in mind.
But then they had to do something as Munnabhai fans all over the place were going "yeh dil mange more". Soon enough, the Munnabhai series was in the pipeline again.
Next, the filmmakers made a lawyer of Munnabhai, and the sequel was titled Munnabhai LLB.
This time, they planned to dabble with the film keeping the lawyers' community in mind. But even that idea didn't click. "The script didn't turn out to be Munnabhai-like," says Hirani.
The plans for the Munnabhai sequel were back in the shelves again. The birth pangs continued though.
It was then that Munnabhai's tryst with Gandhi happened. Recalls Hirani, "I was going for a morning walk, when the idea occurred."
Tell Us: What should be Munnabhai's next adventure?
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The producers promptly named it Munnabhai Meets Mahatma Gandhi. The title was not really inappropriate, given the fact that
It took quite a while for the filmmakers to come up with a jazzy, Munnabhai-type title. At one point of time, they had almost decided on Munnabhai 2nd innings as the title of the film.
But that, too, didn't do justice to Munnabhai and his antics. Gandhigiri is not about cricket after all!
The title of the film was changed yet again. Finally, for what would be the very last time, the much-awaited second episode was christened -- Lage Raho Munnabhai.
An instant hit, the audience seem to have been bowled over yet again by the antics of Munna and Circuit and their tryst with the Mahatma.
And looking back, Producer Chopra and Director Hirani admit that there could not have been a better one.
"Munnabhai MBBS was one of the best films that Bollywood has produced in the recent times. But, the sequel is still better," says Hirani.
But the frequent title changes did provide some food for thought. Would Munnabhai have been as lovable and funny as a lawyer? Though the delightful Lage Raho Munnabhai doesn’t leave any space for complaints, there’s always a next time! Till then, carry on, Munnabhai!
Tell Us: What should be Munnabhai's next adventure?
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