Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt, whose life was caught in a web of drugs and legal hassles, says as a father, he does not want his son to be like him.
The son of late veteran actors Sunil Dutt and Nargis, Sanjay fought a battle with drugs and went to rehab as well as served a jail term. He was arrested for illegal possession of arms in a case related to the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, in which over 250 people were killed and several hundred were wounded.
At the India Today Mind Rocks Youth Summit here on Saturday, Sanjay spoke uninhibitedly about his journey and struggles.
When asked how does he compare himself with his legendary father when it comes to fatherhood, Sanjay, a dad of three -- a son named Shahraan and two daughters Trishala and Iqra -- said: "My father raised us as normal children. I was sent to a boarding school... I went through the grind. And I am the same way with my children.
Opening up on his tryst with drugs, the "Khalnayak" star said: "Well, I got onto drugs in college. It used to be like if you're not into it, you're not in the scene. So, I started it, but I got so hooked on to it that it took me about 10 years to get out... But I was lucky that I had the means and the provisions to get out of it.
"I saw life differently without drugs and I want to tell the young guys that please stay high on your life, on your family, or your work... There's no substance which can make you high. I promise, it's my experience."
Drugs are an easy escape, he admitted, but said the fact that "it's related with being really cool, is bad" because it can lead to addiction and draws people in a vicious cycle.
Sanjay is coming back to films with "Bhoomi", father-daughter story directed by Omung Kumar.
