Exclusive - Anurag Kashyap on Nishaanchi: 'Aaishvary Thackeray gave me four years of his life; I didn’t even know he was a Thackeray'

Anurag Kashyap

Director Anurag Kashyap, who is known as one of Indian cinema’s most fearless filmmakers, is gearing up for the release of his latest film, Nishaanchi. The filmmaker, who has never shied away from experimenting, calls his latest offering a tribute to the Bollywood he grew up on.

In an exclusive interview with Moneycontrol, Anurag Kashyap said he has made this film with all his heart and soul. He wanted to return to the storytelling style of hit writer duo Salim and Javed.

But if you ask him, it is very personal to him; he says, "It's not personal in a way that, like, a lot of it makes you make a very personal film, like 'That Girl In Yellow Boots' was, which I would say is personal. This is not personal. As you have for Hollywood cinema. It's the Bollywood cinephile in me that has made this film and there's a lot of love, which we have not shared in this film over the years. We wanted to make it right and we wanted to make it like a tribute to Bollywood of yesteryear, and we wanted to partner with people who could see that and to find all people who had that love for that Bollywood; that's why it took so much time. I've kept it very close to my heart. This has been the most joy putting this film together."

Anurag Kashyap described Nishaanchi as a film that is deeply rooted in the soil of Uttar Pradesh.

"Nishaanchi is pure storytelling. It is a story that has come from the very soil of North India, of Uttar Pradesh. It's not Wasseypur or Mukkabaaz. It is Lucknow. It has come from that soil. It is also the way the screenplays are or the way the story is, very like how Salim-Javed stories used to be. Very familial, broken bonds. It is how it grows into something else and it stays within the family. And, and it's a film about crime. It's a film about family. It's a film about brotherhood and punishment. And that's what this is. And with lots of the kind of songs that we got to do, the kind of collaborations that came in with the music that we've been dying to do for a long time. And it's just come in, the voices or through Dhruv Ghanekar did with ‘Dear Country’; it is the tone of the film."

One of the most striking details of Nishaanchi is that its lead, Aaishvary Thackeray, devoted four years of his life to the film.

Unaware of The Thackeray lineage

We asked him the reason for taking Aaishvary Thackeray for Nishaanchi; to this he said Anurag admitted he didn’t even know of the young actor's lineage when he first saw his audition tape.

"It is simply what I saw in him, simply what I saw in him. I did not even know he was a Thackeray or a Maharashtrian. And I saw, because he had a showreel of monologues, in which one of the monologues was something that I wrote for Manoj Bajpayee in Shool. I saw and thought, "Ye bahut achcha Bihari bolta hai." When I met him, I realised who he was," he said.

For context, the Thackerays are one of Maharashtra’s most prominent political families. The late Bal Thackeray founded the Shiv Sena, a party that has shaped the state’s politics for decades. His son Uddhav Thackeray went on to become the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, while grandson Aaditya Thackeray is a rising leader in the party. Aaishvary, who comes from this powerful lineage, is the son of Smita Thackeray.

Anurag Kashyap also said after knowing the lineage, he met the Thackeray family and informed them that Aaishvary’s focus needed to remain on the film.

"Then I was like, what happens with a boy who comes from privilege or a background? There would be certain plans by the family. Then I wanted to meet the family. I took a guarantee from the family that he will have to focus on this film, and I am not sure how much time it will take. He gave me four years of his life. And I said the family can't get in the way. They didn't get in the way; they were very supportive," he added.

Like Aaishvary, the film's lead actress Vedika too was discovered unexpectedly and in her case, it was from a music video.

"Vedika also I found from a music video and then I came to know that she is also from Mumbai. Her brief was simple: I need a Kanpur ki Madhuri. Hum log jab bade ho rahe they toh har sheher ki aik Madhuri hoti thi. Toh mujhe Kanpur ki chahiye thi. Language ke liye preparation karvaya and she gave 2-3 years of her life for Nishaanchi," Anurag smiled.

Anurag said this film has been a labor of love for him. "Maine bahut pyar se film banayi hai jisko lekar main Sanjo kar baitha hua tha. Kisi ne kaha tha ki film mein jadoo hota hai, lekin woh jadoo jo hota hai film hit hone ke baad hi pata chalta hai. Jisko kehte hain na decoding, woh baad mein hi hoti hai; woh formula ban jata hai. Maine film bana di hai and iske saath kya hota hai, woh audience hi decide kar sakti hai." ("I've made this film with a lot of love, and I've been eagerly waiting for its release. Someone once said that there's magic in films, but that magic is only revealed after the film becomes a hit. You know how they say decoding a film's success happens later, and that's when the formula becomes clear. I've made the film, and what happens next is for the audience to decide."

Interestingly, despite its artistic depth, Anurag revealed that he consciously chose not to send it to film festivals.

"We had thought about Nishaanchi for festivals but then we decided not to send them to festivals. And rather it only turns into a festival itself. Maza aye logon ko isse dekh kar."

No entourage costs entertained

The filmmaker also touched upon the entourage costs that come with the superstars but to this he simply said he treats makeupand hair as just another department and no such entourages are entertained by him.

"Make up is a department for me. In Bollywood, sab log sirf sundar dikhna chahte hain. I treat makeupas any other department. Simone takes care of prosthetics and hair and makeup. So there is no separate makeupperson for anybody in my film. Main filmon ko aise hi treat karta hoon, saari duniya ka entourage nahi aata unke saath." ("Makeup is just another department for me. In Bollywood, everyone just wants to look beautiful. I treat makeup like any other department. Simone takes care of prosthetics, hair, and makeup. So, there's no separate makeup person for anyone in my film. I treat films like that—I don't bring the entire entourage with me," he added.

A poster of Nishaanchi

Anurag Kashyap said he believes audiences are seeking freshness and originality, and he also pointed to anime as an industry that has quietly grown in India.

"Friday to Friday hi decide ho raha hai ki audience ko kaunsi movie pasand aa rahi hai and kaunsi movie woh dekhne jayenge. Demon Slayer and Mirai are two-hour and 40-minute-long movies. Both are hits and the studio wants us to make short films. It is not the case anymore. Logon ko woh dekhna hai jo unhone dekha nahi hai. Banae Samy, we were not thinking about the box office. It is not in anybody's hand."

Also Read: Nishaanchi Movie Review: Anurag Kashyap strikes back with Aaishvary Thackeray's gritty, glorious debut in his saga of revenge, love and chaos

Rise of Anime in India 

He agreed that the audiences' viewing habits have changed post pandemic and they are only watching stories that offer something new.

"Yes, audiences' viewing habits have changed. They want to watch something that stimulates them. It has to be stimulating and entertaining; it has to be something new. Over the years, very quietly, the two markets that have grown are one of the dubbed versions of South films and the second one is anime."

"Anime lovers love that kind of storytelling imagination and that which lacks so much in our cinema. Purane log hain aur hamare extinct thoughts ho gaye hain. South mein bhi jo new filmmakers aa rahe hain who Youtube se aa rahe hai. After making short films and now they are making movies; their way of shooting films and editing is so fearless. Jab tak original hai, conviction mein hai, wohi click through kar paa raha hai; baaki log are just following. Second-guessing is where they are failing."

Anurag's wonderful movies 

Known for films that defy convention, Anurag Kashyap has been one of the most influential voices in Indian cinema.

From Black Friday and Dev D to Gangs of Wasseypur, Ugly, Mukkabaaz and Manmarziyaan, Anurag's work spans genres but carries a trademark rawness.

His films have premiered at global festivals, yet he has often chosen to step away from glamour and focus on stories rooted in reality. With Nishaanchi, Anurag says he has made a film with “joy” and left the rest for audiences to decide.