Here's everything you need to know about 'Dunki' director, Rajkumar Hirani and his wife, Manjeet Hirani's marriage, from their first meeting to the secrets behind their successful married life.
Rajkumar Hirani is hands-down one of the most important directors in the history of Hindi cinema. The reason why we say 'important' goes to the fact that his journey as a filmmaker has played a critical role in shaping Hindi cinema. It is often stated that the 2000s was one of the finest decades for Bollywood. While actors like Hrithik Roshan, John Abraham, Sushant Singh Rajput, and others made their debut in the 2000s, many filmmakers like Vishal Bharadwaj, Shoojit Sircar, Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra, and many more.
It was truly a golden age for Hindi cinema, and just like all these renowned names, the critically acclaimed director, Rajkumar Hirani also entered showbiz in the 2000s. It was on December 19, 2003, when Rajkumar Hirani made his debut as a director in Bollywood with his film, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. The movie won numerous awards, rejuvenated Sanjay Dutt's acting career, launched Boman Irani in Bollywood, cemented its position as a cult classic, and made Rajkumar Hirani every actor's dream director overnight.
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In the following years, Rajkumar Hirani gave Indian cinema some successful, entertaining, and meaningful films that include the likes of Lage Raho Munna Bhai, 3 Idiots, PK, and Sanju. With just five films as a director in 15 years, he cemented his status as one of the most prominent directors in India. In 2023, Rajkumar Hirani joined hands with Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan for his film, Dunki. The film was released on December 21, 2023, and received mixed reviews.
It was a dream come true moment for Shah Rukh Khan's fans to see him in a movie directed by Rajkumar Hirani, which was why they cherished Dunki, and the film collected Rs. 30 crores on its opening day. Well, almost everybody is well-informed about Rajkumar Hirani's professional achievements and filmography, but his personal life hardly makes to the headlines. The reason behind this is the director's shy nature. However, today, we will talk about his wife, Manjeet Hirani and their arranged marriage. So, without further ado, let's get straight into it.
The ace director, Rajkumar Hirani's wife, Manjeet Hirani joined the Indian Airlines back in 1986 as an air hostess. After working for some time as an air hostess, Manjeet realised that it wasn't exactly what she wanted from life back then. The young and dynamic lady wanted challenges. Hence, she took a sabbatical from her job as an air hostess and went to the US, where she pursued a course on becoming a pilot.
After completing the six-month flying course in the US, Manjeet Lamba started working as a pilot in Indian Airlines. As per reports, Manjeet worked as a pilot for 24 years, and even after her marriage to Rajkumar Hirani and welcoming a kid, she continued working as a pilot. However, it was around 2009 when she bid farewell to her career as a pilot and started her brand new journey as a writer. However, even today, it has yet to be officially known whether Manjeet still takes some flights, but it is a public fact that she is a professional writer now.
It was around the mid-1990s when Rajkumar Hirani's parents started advising their son to tie the knot as he entered his 30s. At that time, he was making ad films and editing promotional trailers for Indian films. At that time, Rajkumar Hirani wasn't interested in getting married as he was so much focused on his work, but after a series of brief discussions with his parents, he agreed to their suggestion. After he decided to get married, the filmmaker's parents started searching for a suitable life partner for their son.
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The family came across a Sikh girl named Manjeet Lamba and found her perfect for their son, Rajkumar Hirani. The two families arranged a meeting, and it was the first time when Manjeet and Rajkumar met each other for the first time. Both families had an open discussion, and it was when Manjeet told his father that she would never leave her job as she was in love with her work. She said:
"I would leave your son but not my job."
The statement took Rajkumar Hirani's father aback, but the editor answered Manjeet Lamba's straightforward statement with a calm 'Okay'. At that moment, she decided to spend the rest of her life with him. The pilot said yes to the editor, and it was in 1994 when Rajkumar and Manjeet got married. As per multiple reports, in the year 1999, Manjeet Hirani and Rajkumar Hirani welcomed their first child, a baby boy, whom they lovingly named Vir Hirani.
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Once, in an interview with Corporate Citizen, Manjeet Hirani opened up about her married life with Rajkumar Hirani and shared some light on how they keep it happy and sound. The doting wife admitted that both she and Rajkumar are extremely serious about their respective professions. Still, there were some moments when they needed each other, and in those moments, they sacrificed their work.
Manjeet Hirani recalled the time when she used to listen to Rajkumar's narration of his debut film, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., time and again as he was nervous and also admitted that he had also come back from his shooting on an urgent basis when she was feeling low.
Highlighting how she and Rajkumar Hirani have always prioritised each other's mental health and happiness over their professional commitments is the key to their happy marriage. We hope they continue to inspire young couples with how they have led their marriage for the last 29 years.
Well, we are in love with the way Rajkumar Hirani and Manjeet Hirani supported each other in their respective journeys. What are your thoughts about them? Let us know.
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