Dutt, 56, was sentenced for firearms offences linked to the 1993 Mumbai
blasts which killed 257 people and injured 713.
He was convicted of buying firearms from the bombers but said the weapons were
necessary in order to defend his family during Hindu-Muslim rioting.
The actor was moved to the Pune jail in 2013 to finish his five-year jail
term.
Dutt kissed the ground as he walked out of the prison on Thursday morning
and was driven to the airport on his way to Mumbai, where he lives.
"I am out here because of their [fans'] support. There is no easy walk
to freedom, my friends," he was quoted as telling reporters by the AFP
news agency.
One of Bollywood's most bankable stars, Dutt is hugely popular for his role
as a lovable gangster in the Munnabhai movies. He has also dabbled in politics.
The son of a Hindu father and a Muslim mother, Dutt said he had bought the
firearms to protect his family during the 1993 Mumbai Hindu-Muslim riots, which
followed the destruction of the Babri mosque by Hindu zealots in the northern
town of Ayodhya.
In 2006, a special anti-terror court convicted 100 people for the blasts.
Twelve were given the death penalty and 20 others sentenced to life
imprisonment.
Dutt, the most high-profile among the convicts, was originally charged with
five offences, including criminal conspiracy and possession of illegal weapons.
In March 2013, India's Supreme Court upheld his conviction, but reduced his
sentence from the earlier six years to five.
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