Sanjay Gupta did not attend college, started Bollywood journey at 16, made first film at 22. Kaante, Kaabil director revealed why his marriage ended: ‘I couldn’t tell her…'

Director Sanjay Gupta, who rose to fame through hit films such as Kaante, Shootout at Lokhandwala, Shootout at Wadala, and Kaabil, passed away after suffering an injury to his head. He was 57. According to police reports, he appeared to have slipped and fallen on the kitchen floor of his home in Versova. He was rushed to the hospital but could not be revived. Sanjay is survived by his wife, Anuradha (Anu) Lekhi Gupta, and their two children.

According to an Indian Express report, Anu and Sanjay had a tumultuous married life. They tied the knot in 1997 and called it quits in 2003. However, despite the divorce, the filmmaker still yearned for her; the two eventually remarried in 2009.

In an interview with author Hussain Zaidi, Sanjay claimed that his involvement in the underworld was one of the reasons behind his marital woes. He had to hold back some information from Anu, causing her to think that he was having an affair behind her back. He revealed that there was a time when he had to have conversations to clear misunderstandings between parties. A friend offered him an empty flat where he would speak to individuals over calls. This continued for some months, and eventually his wife suspected him of being involved with another woman.


“I can't tell her where I'm going; I can't tell her. I just have to shield her from this,” he said. He admitted there were other issues in their marriage, but this played a big role.

In a 2013 chat with the Times of India, he admitted where he messed up in the relationship. He said that he was not successful when he married her, and his struggles with alcoholism and womanising impacted the relationship. He also admitted that he was in a relationship with actress Sameera Reddy for three years after his separation; however, he still pined to be with his wife.

“I was always prompt with my alimony and had given her a one-bedroom apartment in Versova. Then when I made more money, I got her another one so that she could lease it out. I would get her a car every three years and obviously wanted her back in my life and always cared about her. She calls a spade a spade and always keeps me grounded. Also, my link with her family never broke and they would be there for all my screenings. While I was enjoying my life up to a point without her, I just decided that I had to have her back in my life. We then remarried in 2009 and have two kids now,” he said.

About Sanjay Gupta

Gupta rose to fame mainly for directing action thrillers and crime drama films such as Aatish, Kaante, Kaabil, Shootout at Lokhandwala, Shootout at Wadala, Jazbaa, Karam, Zinda, Kaabil and Mumbai Saga. He did not attend college and started working as an assistant to director Pankaj Parashar at 16. He also assisted Rah Sippy. He directed his debut film, the 1994 crime drama Aatish, which emerged as a hit. However, it was the 2002 heist action thriller drama Kaante, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Sunil Shetty, etc which led to his breakout as a filmmaker.

Although he was known for crime dramas/action thrillers, his last film, The Miranda Brothers, was a sports drama film. It starred Harshvardhan Rane in the lead and was released on JioCinema on 25 October 2024