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Best of Anurag Kashyap

Anurag Kashyap

With the emergence of this dynamic, honest and gutsy guy, our film industry underwent a tectonic shift; and thereafter, with his riveting Neo Noir films, he became the flag-bearer of India “Indie Genre”. Anurag Kashyap, a fanatic cinephile, who can be tagged as the Indian counterpart of the American filmmaker Quentin Tarantino (who also is a cinema fan-boy), is one dedicated, scrupulous and authentic film-maker; whose first film Paanch happened to be the one that was deprived of the big screen. But this director remained undaunted and did not dither to make more films and has now become one of the finest directors Indian Cinema has ever had. His films are psychologically bleak and are comprised of facts that depict its authentic realism. As a filmmaker, he believes in capturing the underbelly and showing an uninflected zeitgeist of the cities he shoots in, and that is what makes his films more realistic and thrive when it comes to make-believe; and the colloquial and at times coarse language used in his screenplays adds up to the authenticity of his films. The most illustrious example of his skill as a screenwriter is Ram Gopal Varma’s cult film Satya.

His films are also preferred by the foreign audience, who rather don’t get into the Bollywood sing and dance masala “potboiler”, but prefer to watch the edgier ones. “The Absolute” Kashyap is a habitual audience himself at the International Film Festivals where he indulges himself during the incessant screening of the foreign films; and for that fact he had self effacingly admitted saying, “Film Festivals give me a chance to be who I am – A FAN BOY”, in an interview in Tula Goenka’s book – Not Just BOLLYWOOD. His films are often screened at Venice, Toronto, Cannes and Sundance, and as a matter of fact he has also served as a jury at some Film Festivals.

Apart from his film making, Anurag Kashyap is a righteous human being and never hesitates to express his point of view on the ongoing events in the country. As an evidence of his rebellious and fighting spirit, he has been an outright anarchist who has locked horns with then loathed body “Central Board of Film Certification”. He has shared a great camaraderie with some fellow filmmakers like Imtiaz Ali, Zoya Akhtar, Vikramaditya Motvane and even Karan Johar. He has broken all the stereotypes and has stood for his conviction and at times for others too, and he never fails to raise his voice for the other filmmakers of the industry who faces CBFC impediment.

He believes in finding his own voice in the films he makes and Filmspell, as a coterie of cinephiles identifies his films as unique, well-crafted and absolutely engrossing.

Here is Filmspell’s list of his best movies –

Black Friday [2004]

BlackFriday

Based on S. Hussain Zaidi’s riveting non-fiction book of the same name, this film depicted the 1993 Bombay Blasts (that were allegedly the retaliation of the Babri Masjid demolition); this film exploited acting forte of eminent yet underrated actors like Kay Kay Menon and Pavan Malhotra and presented a riveting account of the dark event.

No Smoking [2007]

no Smoking

Based on Stepher King’s short story Quitter’s Inc., No Smoking is a Freudian, confounding and ambiguous cinema that has multiple interpretations that has an enigmatic air around the plot. This is the most arcane scenario written by Anurag Kashyap.

Gulaal [2009]

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Shot in the backdrop of a Rajputana milieu, this film had a tight screenplay, poetic compositions and sound dialogues. This film took almost eight years to complete after it was written around 2000-2001.

DevD [2009]

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This is a likely AK film of an unlikely AK choice, as he admits that he hates Devdas as a book and the film(s) based on that too. But he treated the subject with his own kind of film-making and succeeded in giving the classic a modern touch; of course with Amit Trivedi’s impeccable compositions. This is the only Anurag Kashyap film, in which music happens to be the highlight.

That Girl in Yellow Boots [2010]

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Normally, yellow is a colour that gives joy, but this film has a disturbing or even depressing story and content. This film which ends with a shocking narrative is the most underrated film by stalwart film director Anurag Kashyap.

Gangs of Wasseypur I and II [2012]

gangs of wasseypur

This is arguably the best film by this eminent filmmaker. It had believable premise, authentic production design and a natural scenario. He had used narration style akin to Martin Scorsese’s in this one. With the five hours of the runtime, this movie (combined I and II) is a breathless and relentless roller coaster ride and makes an absolute modern classic. Filmspell recommends all the cinephiles to watch “The Making of GOW” on YouTube.

Ugly [2014]

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Based on a story from a certain Newspaper, this film is a spellbinding and dark tale shot around the mystery of a missing girl as a narrative. The film has a jaw-dropping denouement.

Raman Raghav 2.0 [2016]

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With the poster of Janus-faced Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Vicky Kaushal, this film is a Neo Noir psychological thriller that promises to completely bamboozle the audience with the climax. This is recently the most talked about film by Anurag Kashyap.

On this note, Filmspell wishes Anurag “Authentic” Kashyap A Very Happy 45th Birthday.

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FilmSpell is about unbiased reviews and awesome recommendations of Foreign, Hollywood and Bollywood movies.

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