Producer bankrupt, courtesy Sanju

One now hears that Apoorva Lakhia’s MumbaiTaxi Service, about corruption in the police and starring Sanjay Dutt in thelead has been shelved. This apparently happened at the behest of producersAshtavinayak.Another Dutt starrer Chatur Singh Two Star, based onthe Pink Panther series and directed by Ajay Chandhok, had been shot in SouthAfrica with much fanfare; it is now stalled.With American studiostightening the noose on illegitimate derivations and adaptations, the makers ofChatur Singh are now willing to let the film remain in the cans. Why would theywant to cough up a fortune for copyright infringement?One of Dutt'sfriends says, "The producers of Sanju's last two films Lamhaa and Knock Out havelost huge amounts of money. Bunty Walia, a close friend of Dutt who producedLamhaa, is on the verge of bankruptcy. Sanju is a fantastic star. He just needsto get back into shape.And he needs to stop relying on wrongadvisers. The people close to him are alienating him from the reality about hiscareer. Sanju needs to realise that he is not choosing the rightprojects."However all is not lost. The next Munnabhai film starts in May 2011. And before that, David Dhawan begins shooting his comedy, Rascal, starring Dutt and Ajay Devgn.Dhawan is oddly optimistic and says,"Dutt is my hero. A great actor and a greater human being. And a friend in needis a friend indeed. I started my career as a director with him. Now, we'll againcreate a dhamaka together. You mark my words. Sanju will bounceback.”Check out Sanjay Dutt’s homepageFollow us on Twitter for more stories