THE METEORIC RISE OF AANAND, THE PRODUCER

After a disastrous start, Anurag Kashyap’s Mukkabaaz has finally picked up pace at the box office. The story of a small town boxer’s love and life is said to do “another Newton” at the box office. But while Mukkabaaz isn’t heading to the Oscars a la Newton, movie critics and trade experts believe the ` 3 crore movie will do at least ` 20 crore worth of business. And the common factor between both Newton and Mukkabaaz’ exceptional stories has been producer Aanand L. Rai, who seems to have hit on the formula to make successes out of small budgeted, out- of- thebox movies. Starting his journey as a producer in Nil Battey Sannatta in 2016, Aanand has also worked on Happy B hag Jayegi, a rom- com of a run away bride, who lands in Pakistan. But question Aanand about his success and he modestly shrugs it off. “I guess, somewhere, the filmmaker’s neeyat, his intention is bound to make an impression on the audience. I sincerely believe that if a filmmaker does his job well, he will be rewarded with success. As a director, when I tried something different within with commercial framework in Tanu Weds Manu and Raanjhana, I was warned against taking a risk by signing Madhavan and Dhanush in the lead roles — big names in the South, but more importantly, fabulous actors. To me, it didn’t matter which language they worked in. It was their talent, not their cultural identity, that carried them forward,” he says.

If Aanand’s gambit as a director has worked, as a producer he’s taken even bigger risks by agreeing to back projects with new and unknown directors. “This is a new Anurag Kashyap that audiences have seen in Mukkabaaz. I firmly believe in the power of cinema to move audiences,” says Aanand. “Anurag has made a moving film. And Vineet Kumar Singh has slogged like a crazy man for his character. He was disheartened when the film opened low; I told him to hang on. I was confident of the film.”

Aanand is now directing Shah Rukh Khan in Zero, and is confident of bringing a new twist to the superstar’s career. “This will be a Shah Rukh Khan the audiences haven’t seen yet,” he confidently says.

This is a new Anurag Kashyap that audiences have seen in Mukkabaaz. I firmly believe in the power of cinema to move audiences — AANAND L. RAI