Ranbir Kapoor says Sanjay Leela Bhansali would hit, abuse him during Black: ‘I used to be kneeling down for hours’

Ranbir Kapoor recalled the time he assisted Sanjay Leela Bhansali on Black. Ranbir said that the way Sanjay treated him on the sets prepared him for the world.

After Ranbir worked as an assistant director on Black, he was launched by Sanjay in Saawariya, opposite Sonam Kapoor. He won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut for his performance in the film.

Speaking at an event in Delhi, Ranbir weighed in on whether the commercial aspect takes precedence over creativity in films, as his uncle Randhir Kapoor said that ‘the Raj Kapoor era of films is over’. Randhir recalled how Raj ‘didn’t calculate money’ during the shoot of Bobby and got the rooftops of Gulmarg painted for the film.

Ranbir partially agreed but also defended present-day directors. “Not saying that my generation of filmmakers are only running behind the commercial aspect… When I assisted Mr (Sanjay Leela) Bhansali (on Black), he used to really treat me as an assistant director. I used to be kneeling down for hours, he used to hit us, he used to abuse us… that only hardens you and prepares you for the world,” he said.

Currently, Ranbir is gearing up for the release of Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra, the first film of a proposed fantasy trilogy. It marks his first on-screen collaboration with Alia Bhatt and also stars Amitabh Bachchan, Mouni Roy, Nagarjuna Akkineni and Dimple Kapadia.

Also see: Ranbir Kapoor asks ‘kya karu main’ after paparazzi crowd around his car for pics, watch

Brahmastra is Ranbir’s third film with Ayan; they have previously worked together in Wake Up Sid and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. The film is set for a theatrical release on September 9, 2022, after several delays in production.

Apart from Brahmastra, Ranbir also has Karan Malhotra’s Shamshera, Sandeep Vanga Reddy’s Animal and Luv Ranjan’s next in the pipeline.

(With inputs from PTI)