‘Six years in jail, still no Marathi’: Sanjay Dutt’s quip goes viral amid row over language rule for auto drivers

Put on the spot to speak Marathi at a Mumbai event on Sunday, Sanjay Dutt found an unexpected escape route: His own jail sentence. Sharing the stage with Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik, the actor deflected the request with a joke that had the room laughing, in visuals of the moment that have since spread widely online.

Taking the mic, Dutt turned to Sarnaik and said, "Pratap bhai. Main 6 saal jail me raha, Yervada mein. Tab bhi Marathi nahi seekh paaya. Main thoda seekha tha. (I was in the Yervada Jail for six years, and even there I didn't learn Marathi. I learnt a little)." He then draped an arm around the minister and added warmly, "Main Pratap bhai ka aabhaari hoon ki mujhe yahan bulaye. Hamara rishta bahut purana hai, 25 saal ho gaye hain (I am grateful to Pratap bhai for calling me here. We go way back, almost 25 years)."

The moment followed Sarnaik's own lighthearted remark to the crowd moments earlier: "Aajkal main sab logon ko Marathi sikha raha hoon (These days, I am teaching everyone Marathi)." He then pivoted to a different subject — his department's new rule requiring Mumbai's autorickshaw drivers to demonstrate basic conversational Marathi to keep their licenses. Switching into Marathi himself, he told the audience, "So I thought after his entry, let us all get Sanjay Dutt to talk in Marathi. He speaks in Hindi, but all of us understand Marathi," India Today reported. The policy has been a flashpoint of debate across the city in recent weeks.

On the work front, Dutt's most recent on-screen appearance came via a cameo in the Arabic production 7 Dogs (2026), where he appeared alongside Salman Khan. His last full theatrical role was in Abhijeet Mohan Warang's political drama Aakhri Sawal (2026), a cast that also included Namashi Chakraborty, Amit Sadh, Tridha Choudhary, and Sameera Reddy.