// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Vaastav: The Reality a true story? No, it's a reel one.

Vaastav: The Reality
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Mahesh Manjrekar
Screenplay by	Mahesh Manjrekar
Story by	Mahesh Manjrekar
Dialogue by	Imtiyaz Husain
Produced by	Deepak Nikalje
Starring	Sanjay Dutt Namrata Shirodkar Mohnish Bahl Shivaji Satam Reema Lagoo Paresh Rawal Sanjay Narvekar
Narrated by	Reema Lagoo
Cinematography	Vijay Kumar Arora
Edited by	V. N. Mayekar
Music by	Songs: Jatin–Lalit Rahul Ranade Background Score: Sandeep Chowta
Production company	Adishakti Films
Release date	7 October 1999 (1999-10-07)
Running time	144 minutes
Country	India
Language	Hindi

Vaastav: The Reality is a 1999 Indian Hindi-language action film written and directed by Mahesh Manjrekar in his Bollywood directorial debut, and starring Sanjay Dutt, Namrata Shirodkar, and Sanjay Narvekar in lead roles, with Mohnish Behl, Paresh Rawal, Reema Lagoo and Shivaji Satam in supporting roles.

Vaastav was promoted with the tagline "The Reality", referring to the harsh realities of life in the Mumbai underworld. The film is said to be loosely based on the life of Mumbai underworld gangster Chhota Rajan.

Released on 7 October 1999, Vaastav: The Reality received positive reviews from critics, with major praise directed towards Dutt's performance, which is widely considered as his career-best. It emerged as a major commercial success at the domestic and overseas box-office.

At the 45th Filmfare Awards, Vaastav: The Reality received 6 nominations, including Best Film, Best Director (Manjrekar), Best Supporting Actor (Narvekar) and Best Supporting Actress (Lagoo), and won 2 awards – Best Actor (Dutt) and Filmfare–Sony Award (Manjrekar).

Dutt's performance received universal critical acclaim and was unanimously regarded by critics amongst one of Indian cinema's most memorable onscreen characters. Over the years, it has become a cult film.

The film was remade into Telugu as Bhavani (2000), in Kannada as Bhagavan Dada (2000) and in Tamil language as Don Chera (2006). It was followed by the 2002 sequel Hathyar. In 2013, it was dubbed in Bhojpuri as Tohar Ko Thok Debe (I will shoot you).

Plot

Raghunath Namdev Shivalkar, alias "Raghu", and his best friend "Dedh Footiya" struggle to find employment in Mumbai. Raghu lives in a chawl with his father Namdev, a former mill worker, his mother Shanta, and his unemployed graduate brother Vijay. Showing no interest in academics, Raghu and Dedh Footiya open a pav bhaji stall. The business succeeds until the brother of a local gangster, Fracture Bandya, frequently visits the stall in a drunken state and violently assaults Dedh Footiya. Pushed to their limit, Raghu and Dedh Footiya retaliate and accidentally kill him.

Now fugitives, the duo seeks the assistance of their childhood friend, Sub-Inspector Kishore Kadam, who connects them with Vitthal Kaanya, a rival gang lord willing to offer protection. Fracture Bandya attempts to trap and murder them through a treacherous meeting arranged by a middleman named Suleiman Bhai. However, Raghu and Dedh Footiya intercept the plot and eliminate Fracture Bandya instead, formally embedding themselves in the Mumbai underworld.

Raghu quickly rises to become a feared hitman under Vitthal Kaanya, with Dedh Footiya serving as his primary accomplice. Their efficiency helps Kaanya dominate the city's criminal empire. Recognizing Raghu's lethal utility, Home Minister Babban Rao Kadam bypasses the gang hierarchy and recruits him directly for high-level political assassinations. Raghu accepts, ignoring the warnings of Kishore, who nevertheless continues to leak police intelligence to keep his friend alive.

The turf war intensifies when the remaining members of the Fracture gang assassinate Vitthal Kaanya. They launch a follow-up hit on Raghu during Dedh Footiya's father's funeral, missing Raghu but severely injuring his father. In a calculated counter-strike, Raghu tortures a corrupt officer, Inspector Rane, to learn that the Fracture gang is traveling to Shirdi. After executing Rane, Raghu and Dedh Footiya ambush the rival gang on a bridge, slaughtering them entirely and cementing Raghu as the city's undisputed underworld kingpin.

Despite his dominance, Raghu's position becomes precarious. Kishore repeatedly warns the duo that Babban Rao will dispose of them once their political utility expires. The dynamic shifts when Babban Rao orders Dedh Footiya to assassinate an innocent Muslim man, sparking deadly communal riots. Shortly after, during a forced land-acquisition dispute, an enraged Raghu murders an unyielding Parsi landowner, Parvez, who threatened to expose the operation. The public and political fallout forces Babban Rao's hand; to sever his ties to the underworld, the minister issues a direct "shoot-at-sight" warrant for the duo.

The police successfully ambush and kill Dedh Footiya in an encounter designed to bait Raghu. Alerted by Kishore that a permanent hit order is out on him, a paranoid Raghu goes into hiding. Realizing his wife Sonia and his parents are prime targets for both the police and Babban Rao's fixers, Raghu orchestrates a final meeting with the minister via Suleiman Bhai. Raghu assassinates Babban Rao to stop him from destroying more lives, though Suleiman Bhai is killed in the crossfire.

Hunted, cut off, and suffering a severe mental breakdown marked by violent hallucinations, a broken Raghu slips back into his family's chawl. He begs his mother to save him from the approaching police, handing her his weapon and gold chains. Recalling a past moment when Raghu had playfully taught her how to handle a firearm, Shanta takes the gun, points it at her suffering son, and pulls the trigger to grant him mercy. The story concludes on a Mumbai beach during Raghu's annual funeral rites, where Shanta recounts the cautionary tale to her young grandson, Rohit, praying for the absolution of Raghu's sins.

Cast

• Sanjay Dutt as Raghunath "Raghu" Namdev Shivalkar
• Namrata Shirodkar as Sonia "Sonu" Shivalkar, Raghu's wife
• Deepak Tijori as Sub-Inspector Kishore Kadam "Kisha"
• Sanjay Narvekar as Dedh Footiya
• Mohnish Bahl as Vijay Namdev Shivalkar, Raghu's brother
• Ekta Sohini as Pooja Shivalkar, Vijay's wife
• Shivaji Satam as Namdev Shivalkar, Raghu and Vijay's father
• Reema Lagoo as Shanta Shivalkar, Raghu and Vijay's mother
• Usha Nadkarni as Dedh Footiya's mother
• Paresh Rawal as Suleiman Basha aka Mandavali Baadshah
• Mohan Joshi as Home Minister Babban Rao Kadam
• Ashish Vidyarthi as Vitthal Kaanya
• Himani Shivpuri as Laxmi Akka
• Mahesh Manjrekar as himself in 'Apni Toh Nikal Padi'
• Jack Gaud as Fracture Bandya
• Ganesh Yadav as Chhota Fracture
• Kishore Nandlaskar as Dedh Footiya's father (drunkard)
• Achyut Potdar as an old Muslim man murdered by Dedh Footiya
• Anand Abhyankar as a Parsi Man (Parvez)
• Bharat Jadhav as Raghu's friend
• Makarand Anaspure as Raghu's friend
• Satish Rajwade as Satya
• Atul Kale as Bhopu
• Nilesh Divekar as Raghu's friend
• Dhananjay Mandrekar as Commissioner of Police
• Jayant Savarkar as Pandit
• Kashmera Shah as an item number "Jawani Se"
• Prabhakar as "Fracture" Bandya's henchman (uncredited)

Soundtrack

All lyrics are written by Sameer except where noted.

No.	Title	Music	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Meri Duniya Hai"	Jatin–Lalit	Kavita Krishnamurthy, Sonu Nigam	04:40
2.	"Meri Duniya Hai (Male)"	Jatin–Lalit	Sonu Nigam	04:38
3.	"Tere Pyar Ne (Male)"	Jatin–Lalit	Kumar Sanu	04:36
4.	"Tere Pyar Ne (Female)"	Jatin–Lalit	Kavita Krishnamurthy	04:37
5.	"Jawani Se Ab Jung"	Jatin–Lalit	Preetha Mazhumdar	04:44
6.	"Apni To Nikal Padi"	Jatin–Lalit	Kumar Sanu, Atul Kale	04:22
7.	"Har Taraf Hai Yeh Shor"	Jatin–Lalit	Vinod Rathod, Atul Kale	05:41
8.	"Shendur Laal Chadhayo (Aarti)"	Jatin–Lalit	Ravindra Sathe	03:14
9.	"Vaastav Theme - 1"	Rahul Ranade	Ravindra Sathe	01:14
10.	"Vaastav Theme - 2"	Rahul Ranade	Ravindra Sathe	01:09
11.	"Apni Maa" (lyrics by Gautam Joglekar)	Rahul Ranade	Shankar Mahadevan	05:33

Accolades

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
Bollywood Movie Awards	8 June 2000	Best Actor	Sanjay Dutt	Won
Filmfare Awards	13 February 2000	Best Film	Vaastav: The Reality	Nominated
		Best Director	Mahesh Manjrekar	Nominated
		Filmfare – Sony Award		Won
		Best Actor	Sanjay Dutt	Won
		Best Supporting Actor	Sanjay Narvekar	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress	Reema Lagoo	Nominated
International Indian Film Academy Awards	24 June 2000	Best Film	Vaastav: The Reality	Nominated
		Best Director	Mahesh Manjrekar	Nominated
		Best Story		Nominated
		Best Actor	Sanjay Dutt	Won
		Best Supporting Actress	Reema Lagoo	Nominated
		Best Performance in a Negative Role	Mohan Joshi	Nominated
		Best Editing	V. N. Mayekar	Won
Screen Awards	23 January 2000	Best Actor	Sanjay Dutt	Won
		Best Supporting Actor	Sanjay Narvekar	Nominated
		Best Performance in a Negative Role	Mohan Joshi	Nominated
		Best Story	Mahesh Manjrekar	Nominated
		Best Screenplay		Nominated
Zee Cine Awards	11 March 2000	Best Director		Nominated
		Best Technical Director		Won
		Best Screenplay		Won
		Best Action	Raam Shetty	Nominated
		Best Make Up Artist	Hemchandra Sawant	Nominated

Reception

Reviewing the film for Rediff.com, Suparn Verma compared its theme to Hollywood films Scarface (1983), The Godfather (1972), and Indian films such as Satya (1998), Nayakan (1987) and Agneepath (1990). He felt the film offered "no new insight into the underworld" and added that it was "fast-paced and taut at times". However, he felt the film was "well shot and edited" and criticized the "lengthy dialogues". He concluded commending the acting performance of Sanjay Dutt and called it "one of the best performances of his career". He added, "From an easy-going guy to a broken man -- the role is essayed with great care by him, maintaining a consistency throughout." Mukhtar Anjoom of Deccan Herald felt Dutt, who looked "terrific", couldn't "hold the excitement for long" due to the "shaky screenplay".

External links

• Vaastav: The Reality at IMDb
• Vaastav: The Reality at Rotten Tomatoes