Munna Bhai franchise might never happen again and the reason is Rajkumar Hirani-Vidhu Vinod Chopra fallout?

Munna Bhai is a very popular franchise and the audiences were excited to see the third installment, which was tentatively titled Munna Bhai Chale America. Munna Bhai 3, as we all know, did not happen even 18 years later. The reason for that could be a potential fallout between the makers Rajkumar Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra. They had collaborated on some very successful movies but unfortunately, Munna Bhai 3 just never took off.

Munna Bhai 3 put on the backburner

Munna Bhai Chale America was announced and reportedly, the script for the film was ready and the pre-production work began too. It was then announced that the movie was on the backburner. The makers did not issue any clarification on whether the movie will ever happen or not and they remain mum on the matter till date.

Why the film never went on floors

Munna Bhai 3 never happened since the lead actor Sanjay Dutt was imprisoned for a few years. According to a report on Hindustan Times, Rajkumar and Vidhu then parted ways. It read, “There was a film with a working title Munna Bhai Chale America, but that was soon shelved without any reason. The script was finalised and the pre-production had also started, but it could not happen.” Although the makers had the script, it never took off. Now, it is reported that Munna Bhai 3 script has been merged into Rajkumar's upcoming film with Shah Rukh Khan - Dunki.

Hirani-Chopra collaboration

Rajkumar Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra had some of the most successful partnerships over the years. They worked on the Munna Bhai franchise aka Munna Bhai M.B.B.S and Lage Raho Munna Bhai, 3 Idiots, PK and Sanju. While Munna Bhai was led by Sanjay Dutt, 3 Idiots and PK marked Aamir Khan-Hirani’s collaboration. Sanju featured Ranbir Kapoor in the lead role. He played on-screen Sanjay Dutt.

Hirani is coming back as a director with Dunki. The movie stars Shah Rukh Khan in the lead role with Taapsee Pannu and is Hirani’s first film which is not bankrolled by Vidhu Vinod Chopra.