Sanjay Dutt celebrates his 61st birthday, Maanayata says she has protected him from people who tried to use him, Read more

Actor Sanjay Dutt celebrates his 61st birthday today. Controversy's blue-eyed child as he's labelled, his journey has been everything but easy, which includes drugs, jail, broken marriages and Lung Cancer. His wife, Maanayata Dutt has stood by him for the past 13 years, and in her words she 'protected' him from people who tried to use him. The couple has two children, Shahraan and Iqra.

Maanayata and Sanjay dated for two years before getting married to each other in 2008. They got married in Goa, in the presence of their close friends and family. Their love story faced several challenges, as Sanjay Dutta went to jail in 2013, and many believe he wrote to her regularly, he was released in 2016. In 2020, Sanjay Dutt had to fight lung cancer but emerged victorious.

In an old interview, Maanayata said that she came as a 'barricade' between him and his 'fair-weather' friends. She also said,“Wherever there’s power, there’s bound to be a lot of conspiracy hovering around that source of power. And let’s face it, Sanju is very powerful. There were too many people around him trying to use him. I came like a barricade in Sanju’s life to stand between him and those who want to use him. Naturally, these fair-weather friends resent me. I spoilt their party, you see.”

She mentioned that Sanjay had brought stability into her life. “Sanju has stood by me through thick and thin. I’ve known him for nine years. We started seeing each other seriously in 2005. But he knew my past. So when ‘friends’ tried to provoke him he just laughed it off. He knew everything about me.”

Sanjay Dutt and Maanayata’s love is evident in their photos on Instagram. On their wedding anniversary last year, Sanjay wrote an emotional post for her, with the caption, “Don’t know what I would do without you, Happy Anniversary.” Maanayata had shared another photo with the caption, “There is no feeling in the world like knowing you have someone by your side to face whatever life throws at you.”

Maanayata is on good terms with Trishala, Sanjay's daughter from first wife, and the two often engage in commenting and liking each others photos on Instagram.