Director Rajiv Rai says replacing Sanjay Dutt in Yudh after actor faced personal issues cost him their friendship

Filmmaker Rajiv Rai recently opened up about his broken friendship with Sanjay Dutt after he replaced the actor in his directorial debut, Yudh (1985). Speaking to Vickey Lalwani, Rajiv explained that he had to replace Sanjay because the actor was going through personal difficulties at the time.

He said, "Sanjay Dutt was going through a personal issue for those days and hence I could not complete Yudh with him." Rajiv shared that his family shared a close bond with the Dutts. His father, Gulshan Rai, had financed Sanjay's debut film, Rocky, which was directed by the actor's father, Sunil Dutt. Rajiv also shared that his father and Sunil Dutt had a close friendship.

While Rajiv's father and Sunil Dutt continued to be friends, Rajiv said that replacing Sanjay in Yudh damaged his friendship with the actor. He said, "We are friends on the surface now, but there is no close friendship anymore. I may have visited his home once or twice after the incident. Before that we had a really deep friendship, which broke. I was not happy making that decision as well. Sometimes, when I think about it I feel I shouldn't have done it."

Rajiv shared that Sanjay was supposed to play Jackie Shroff's role in the film. However, after he could not complete the film, the entire film had to be reshot, with only 20-30% remaining to be shot. Even Anil Kapoor was recast in the film, the director said.

Released in 1985, Yudh marked Rajiv Rai's directorial debut. Produced by his father, Gulshan Rai, the action thriller starred Jackie Shroff, Anil Kapoor in a double role, Tina Munim, Nutan, Danny Denzongpa and Hema Malini, among others. The film follows a police officer and a lawyer whose lives become intertwined in a story involving kidnapping, crime and family secrets. Rajiv Rai went on to direct films such as Tridev (1989), Vishwatma (1992), Mohra (1994) and Gupt (1997).

Sanjay Dutt has continued to work across Hindi and regional cinema. In 2026, he appeared in films including The Raja Saab, Dhurandhar: The Revenge, Raja Shivaji, Aakhri Sawal and 7 Dogs. He also starred in Haiwaan, released in September 2026. Among his upcoming projects is Khalnayak Returns, a sequel to his 1993 hit Khal Nayak.