Gangs Of Wasseypur to Dev D: Anurag Kashyap redefines Bollywood

Anurag Kashyap terms Bombay Velvet a 'disaster'

Anurag Kashyap refers to Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma-starrer Bombay Velvet as “the biggest loss making film in the history of cinema." In an interview with certain section of media, pointing out as to what went wrong with his big film, Anurag says, "When you let people buy into your idea and dream, you also have to take on their pressure. My own partner told me that I had made a Rs 90-crore art film and a lot of people had issues with that," he reveals, adding that he has to live with the burden of losing all that money for the rest of his life. "That gives me nightmares. We planned way too many things with our film and it was a disaster," he sighs.

Anurag seems to have identified where he went wrong with his film and is mending his ways as far as spending on films is concerned. However, he is also focussing on his acting career. Click on the next slide to know more...

A double whammy of negative roles

Anurag Kashyap is slated to play the villain in Sonakshi Sinha-starrer Akira that is being directed by AR Murugadoss. According to reports, Sonakshi Sinha’s Akira will feature Anurag Kashyap as a bald Bhojpuri baddie with a handlebar moustache. However, this isn't the only film that Anurag is slated to play the villain in. It is being rumoured that his role in AK vs SK is also going to be a negative one.

Anurag Kashyap has redefined Bollywood. Read on to know how...

Anurag Kashyap has truly revolutionised the manner in which Bollywood perceives cinema. Blurring the lines between the hinterlands and metroes, Kashyap manages to bring forth a different picture of India. Completely unapologetic about the subject, Anurag's films are as close to reality as it gets. Redefining noir cinema with a bit of desi drama, he has managed to strike a balance between the aesthetics and box-office prospects. While not all of his films have worked at the ticket windows, most have been lauded for their experimental content that dares to challenge the traditional norms set in Bollywood. On his birthday today, we take a look at Anurag Kashyap's films that we believe have changed the manner in which the world sees Bollywood...

Black Friday: After a failed attempt to make Allwyn Kalicharan in 2003, Anurag Kashyap started working on Black Friday, a film based on the book by Hussain Zaidi about the 1993 Bombay bombings. The Bombay high court put a stay on the release of the film, until the judgement in the bomb blasts case was delivered. It was decided after a petition filed by a group of 1993 bomb blasts accused, challenging the release of the film based on their case. The film got censorship clearance in 2007, and was released after two years. The critics were immediately stumped with Anurag's style of filmmaking and lauded him for being true to the subject, without a care about the kind of backlash that he could face, given the sensitive issue he was dealing with. Black Friday opened the gates for terrorist dramas set in the era when the underworld flourished in Mumbai.

No Smoking: With No Smoking, Anurag Kashyap attempted to adapt Stephen King's 1978 short story, Quitters, Inc. into a film. The result was a surrealistic thriller about a chain-smoker who gets trapped in the maze of a person who guarantees will make him quit smoking. Starring John Abraham, the film failed to click with the critics and the audience. The ambiguity of the film and its haphazard climax was rather confusing. After a hard-hitting film like Black Friday, it was difficult to accept a whimsical film like No Smoking. However, the film can be appreciated for its approach. To have made a film on such a subject was indeed applaud-worthy and while the execution might not have been top-notch, the film was indeed an experiment that deserved a chance at the ticket windows.

Gangs Of Wasseypur: Anurag truly came into the spotlight with his 2012 film, Gangs Of Wasseypur, that was released in two parts. The film was screened at the 2012 Cannes Directors' Fortnight, London Indian Film Festival, Toronto film festival and the Sundance Film Festival in 2013 and praised by everyone. The crime saga centered on the coal mafia of Dhanbad with the story spanning from the early 1940s to 2009. Both the parts of the film had received appreciation from Indian and international critics alike. The film transformed the manner in which Bollywood made films. Suddenly more filmmakers were willing to experiment with ambitious grey characters based in the hinterlands. The film has, over the years, gained a cult status.

Dev D: Dev D was a contemporary take on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel, Devdas. It was the 12th film adaptation of the Bengali novel. Apparently, it was the film's hero, Abhay Deol, who had pitched the original idea of the film to Anurag. Mahie Gill and Kalki Koechlin played the characters of Paro and Chandramukhi respectively. The film managed to make a comment on the changed status of relationships in modern India. While everyone was quite well-versed with the original story, it was refreshing to see the juxtaposing reality. The social media age and its many evils was rightly portrayed in the film. While it would be impossible to imagine a Devdas in today's day and age, Anurag's Dev.D was quite relatable.

Bombay Velvet: A period film set in Bombay in the 1960s, based on Princeton University Historian Gyan Prakash's book, Mumbai Fables, Bombay Velvet was a much-awaited film. Starring Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma in the lead roles, the film was co-edited by the Academy Award-winner editor, Thelma Schoonmaker, who is known for her collaboration with Martin Scorsese. Despite the hype, the film opened to mixed reviews and a lukewarm response at the box-office. while critics appreciated its retro-look, performances, styling and music, they criticised its faltered storytelling. However, the film was successful in reasserting that Anurag Kashyap would never shy away from making films that he believes in.