From Zaira Wasim and Aamir Khan-starrer musical drama Secret Superstar to Ayushmann Khurrana and Tabu-starrer black comedy crime thriller Andhadhun, there have been many low-budget Bollywood films that have earned hundreds of crores at the box office. Another addition to this list is the 2006 satirical comedy drama Lage Raho Munna Bhai.
Directed by Rajkumar Hirani and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Lage Raho Munna Bhai starred Sanjay Dutt as Munna Bhai, a Mumbai gangster, and Arshad Warsi as his sidekick Circuit. Sanjay and Arshad reprised their roles from the 2003 film Munna Bhai MBBS, the first film in the Munna Bhai series.
The 2006 film won over the hearts of the audiences and critics as it attempted to resurrect Mahatma Gandhi's ideals through Ganghigiri. Dutt's Munna hallucinates Mahatma Gandhi, played by Dilip Prabhavalkar, and spreads the practices and theories followed by the Father of the Nation in his life. Vidya Balan played a radio jockey named Janvi, Munna's love interest. Boman Irani, Dia Mirza, Jimmy Shergill, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, and Saurabh Shukla were also seen in pivotal roles.
Made in just Rs 19 crore, the Rajkumar Hirani directorial went on to become a blockbuster as it earned Rs 100.78 crore gross (Rs 74.65 crore net) in India and Rs 125 crore gross worldwide. The film also went on to win four National Film Awards - Best Supporting Actor to Dilip Prabhavalkar, Best Screenplay to Abhijat Joshi, Rajkumar Hirani, and Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Best Lyricist to Swanand Kirkire for the song Bande Mein Tha Dum, and Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment.
In November 2006, Lage Raho Munna Bhai became the first full-length Indian movie to be shown at United Nations. The film was screened as part of the centennial observation of the first Satyagraha launched by Mahatma Gandhi in 1906 in Johannesburg, South Africa against an ordinance that imposed restrictions on Asians.
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