Anurag Kashyap is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, producer and occasional actor, widely associated with independent and alternative cinema in Hindi. Born in 1972, he is regarded as one of the leading figures of the new wave of Hindi cinema that emerged in the 2000s, known for narratives that depart from mainstream Bollywood conventions and engage with crime, politics and the social fabric of small-town India.
| Name | Anurag Kashyap |
|---|---|
| Born | 1972 |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Occupation | Film director, screenwriter, producer, actor |
| Primary industry | Hindi cinema |
| Notable production banner | Phantom Films (co-founder, now dissolved) |
Kashyap began his career in the late 1990s as a screenwriter, contributing to projects in the parallel and mainstream Hindi film industries before moving into direction. His early years were marked by struggles with film certification and distribution, most notably with his directorial debut Paanch, which remained unreleased.
Kashyap co-wrote Ram Gopal Varma's Satya (1998), a film widely credited with reshaping the depiction of urban crime in Hindi cinema. He continued writing for various directors before establishing himself as a director in his own right.
His directorial works include Black Friday, based on S. Hussain Zaidi's book on the 1993 Bombay bombings; Dev.D, a contemporary reimagining of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's Devdas; Gulaal; and That Girl in Yellow Boots. He gained wider international attention with the two-part epic Gangs of Wasseypur (2012), which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival's Directors' Fortnight. Subsequent films include Ugly, Bombay Velvet, Raman Raghav 2.0, Mukkabaaz, Manmarziyaan and Choked.
Kashyap co-directed the first season of Sacred Games (2018), the Indian original series produced for Netflix, with Vikramaditya Motwane.
He co-founded Phantom Films in 2011 along with Vikramaditya Motwane, Vikas Bahl and Madhu Mantena. The company produced several notable independent and crossover Hindi films before being dissolved in 2018. Kashyap has also produced films through Anurag Kashyap Films Pvt. Ltd.
Kashyap has appeared as an actor in films directed by other filmmakers, including roles in AK vs AK and a number of supporting and lead parts in Hindi and Tamil productions.
Kashyap is frequently cited for mentoring and platforming a generation of writers, directors and actors in independent Hindi cinema. His films are noted for their handling of violence, moral ambiguity and regional settings, and for foregrounding non-metropolitan India, particularly the Hindi heartland. He has been a regular presence at international festivals including Cannes, Toronto, Venice and Sundance.