The no-theme theme

making Hyderabad Blues,” Nagesh recounts. “I had raced through the proverbial check list for success—gone abroad, done my masters’, found a job, worked my way up the corporate ladder, had a good apartment, a sports car, everything. But I was still miserable. Unhappiness is a great motivator. I decided to give my passion for films a shot.”

Eschewing playing it safe, Kukunoor opted to produce, direct, write and act in Hyderabad Blues, an Indian film largely in English! He laughs wryly. “If you look at it today, it’s all crappy sound, no-name actors, and the language is not what you expect. Yet it worked. That set me on the path of sticking to what I believe in.”

Taking the lead

Kukunoor didn’t pursue a lucrative acting career even after playing the lead in a successful film. “I enjoy direction 100 times more than acting,” he explains.

Direction was a smart choice because his films, such as Hyderabad Blues, Iqbal and Dor, positioned him in the vanguard of the cinematic movement that, in the new millennium, has seen Hindi films shift from formula fare towards a qualified realism.

I ask Nagesh if he recognised his consistent switching of genres as a risky career move, and he exhales, “Hell, yes! A director is not given an opportunity to try a different genre unless she or he fights. If Raju Hirani wanted to make a really dark, psycho thriller (and more so after Munnabhai), the whole industry would have been like, ‘What! This succeeded so don’t back off.’ However, I am determined not to repeat myself. After Iqbal and Dor, I started a wacky comedy, Bombay to Bangkok, and a hundred people told me ‘joote padenge’ but I didn’t listen.”

Next came Kukunoor’s first collaborations with A-list actors—akshay Kumar in the thriller Tasveer 8X10 and John Abraham in the introspective Aashaein. But they failed to make an impact. So, is Kukunoor more comfortable with new actors? The director reflects, “I truly enjoyed working with both Akshay and John. But because those films didn’t do well, obviously I wasn’t invited back to do the bigger actor films. This suited me just fine because at the heart of what I do is to work with lesserknown actors. Fortunately, now a huge chunk of these films get made even in Bollywood.”

Considering he has no discernible preference in genre, I ask the director to identify the signature Kukunoor touch. “I truly work on directing a good performance. What I do relatively well is bring a touch of realism, even if it is in a thriller like 8X10. Akki plays a real person and that realism comes from being able to direct actors in the correct way. I’m not one of those directors who tells the actors, ‘Line aise bolo’. I get them into the right space and then I look to them to bring something different to the table,” he says.

He also spots some running themes. “I’ve undoubtedly identified with and rooted for the underdog—for example, in Iqbal and also in Dor, in which Ayesha Takia’s downtrodden character manages to rise up against the system.”

Another constant with Kukunoor is strong women characters. He says, “I always felt that women get the short end of the stick in our films. After Iqbal was a hit, people said: Why are you doing a woman-oriented film like Dor? Today, no one questions it anymore.”

Staying true

Kukunoor’s insistence on pivotal roles for women continues with his political web series City Of Dreams, which showcases the upheavals faced by an iron-willed woman (played by Priya Bapat) when she stakes a claim on the chief minister’s position. But he says, “I’m mostly not aware politically.” He elaborates, “After Iqbal, I was asked if I was an ardent cricket fan and I said I don’t watch cricket! I like to step out and be uncomfortable when creating.”

The proliferation of cuss words on streaming shows shocks me, but Kukunoor counters with a laugh: “I was one of the early grandfathers of cussing with Hyderabad Blues. That’s how I talk to my friends and I brought that reality to the screen. As for the explosion in sex and expletives on the web, filmmakers have been reined in for 70 years. Allow them to vent for a little while. They will get bored.

Nagesh on the sets of City Of Dreams Season 2 during the pandemic; (top) with actor Priya Bapat while shooting for the show

"I AM DETERMINED NOT TO REPEAT MYSELF. AFTER IQBAL AND DOR, I STARTED A WACKY COMEDY, AND A HUNDRED PEOPLE TOLD ME 'JOOTE PADENGE''. BUT I DIDN'T LISTEN"

{ This or that? }

Lassi or chai?

I love chai. I do the whole English breakfast and tea made in a kettle as a daily morning ritual.

Bungee jumping or deep-sea diving?

I have tried deep-sea diving, I want to do bungee jumping now.

Mountains or beaches?

I love mountains, jungles, greenery and cold weather.