‘Dhoom’ director Sanjay Gadhvi dies at 56

Dhoom director Sanjay Gadhvi died on Sunday morning at his residence here, his elder daughter Sanjina said. He was 56.

Gadhvi, who was three days shy of his 57th birthday, is best known for helming two blockbuster hits in the Yash Raj Films’ Dhoom franchise — Dhoom (2004) and Dhoom 2 (2006).

According to Gadhvi’s daughter, the director was “perfectly healthy”.

“He passed away at 9.30 am this morning at his residence. We are not sure what it is, but it is most likely a heart attack. He wasn’t unwell, he was perfectly healthy,” Sanjina told PTI.

Gadhvi made his directorial debut in 2000 with Tere Liye, which he followed up with 2002’s Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai, his first project with Yash Raj Films.

The director gained attention with his third directorial, the stylish action thriller Dhoom, which made motorbiking a rage among Indian youth in the early 2000s.

The 2002 film followed the story of a cat-and-mouse game between a gang of motorbike robbers, led by Kabir (John Abraham), and Jai Dixit (Abhishek Bachchan), a Mumbai cop who teams up with Ali (Uday Chopra), a motorbike dealer to stop them. It also starred Esha Deol and Rimi Sen.

The success of Dhoom spawned a film franchise.

Gadhvi also directed its superhit sequel Dhoom 2. The 2006 film starred Bachchan, Chopra, Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Bipasha Basu.

The third Dhoom film was, however, directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya. The 2013 movie featured Bachchan, Chopra, Aamir Khan, and Katrina Kaif.

Gadhvi’s film credits include Kidnap (2008), Ajab Gazabb Love (2012) and Operation Parindey, his last directorial which was released in 2020.

Besides Sanjini, Gadhvi is survived by his wife and another daughter.