Apurva-fame director Nikhil Nagesh Bhat justifies why violence is a recurring thread in many of his films

Advertisement

Nonika Singh

His latest film Apurva, streaming on Disney+Hotstar, may not have opened to flattering reviews. But writer-director Nikhil Nagesh Bhat is not bogged down easily. He views both, criticism and appreciation, as part of the learning curve. He believes, “Once the film is out, you can’t control the narrative.”

But, yes, he does take offence at those who are dismissing Apurva as ‘watered down version’ of NH10. For one, he thinks while NH10 was a revenge saga Apurva is a survival thriller. Besides, Nikhil had written the script of Apurva way before (in 2009) NH10 was made. But those were the days when films with female protagonists at the heart of it did not find backing so easily. Fortunately for him Murad Khaitani and Disney+ Hotstar found merit in his story.

Nikhil is not a one-film wonder. His actioner Kill, which opened at Toronto International Film Festival this year, got a resounding response. He chuckles, “Imagine a film which is based so locally, finds international audience who were even chanting, kill, kill.” As it releases early next year in the US, UK and India, he promises viewers an emotional story with a lot of heart but not for the faint-hearted.

Like Anurag Kashyap, ‘the great filmmaker’ whom he assisted briefly for post-production of Black Friday, violence is a recurring thread in many of Nikhil’s films too. He reasons, “Like love, greed, pain and grief, violence is a universal emotion and immanent in all of us.” Sure, he agrees it has grave consequences and that’s why in all his films acts of violence are always accounted for and perpetrators of crime invariably defeated. He says, “You cannot escape your karma. It will catch up with you.”

Interestingly, his own karma, good of course, has led him to two divergently different powerhouse productions, seemingly strange bedfellows, Guneet Monga’s Sikhya Entertainment and Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions. How the two came on board for Kill is not a long story but simply the magic of one page story. Guneet, whom he has known since her much feted The Lunchbox days, read it and nodded ‘aye aye’ instantly. Persuading Karan wasn’t a Herculean task either. He can’t say whether having such biggies behind him opens doors but yes it has facilitated tremendous international exposure for the film. Besides, Nikhil managed to rope in distinguished Korean action director Se-yeong Oh of Snowpiercer-fame for Kill. Now with Lionsgate acquiring North American and UK rights of the film, prospects are looking even better.

In times, when OTT has become the land of opportunities, the competition is likely to be equally stiff. But he insists, “It is a healthy competition. Makers are pushing the envelope and putting their best foot forward to create good content which bodes very well for the entertainment industry.”

His oeuvre may have been varied, but he is motivated by the challenge of filmmaking and not genre-jumping. If Brij Mohan Amar Rahe was shot in 19 days on a shoestring budget, web series The Gone Game was made during the pandemic. Apurva took 14 years in the making and Kill is his first actioner. What is important for him is not to make his voice but the story he tells distinctive. “If the story is unique, it will find its own voice as it has a life of its own.”

A writer first, he is itching to go back to the writing board. Makers are inundated by ideas but ultimately, “I need to be emotionally driven to make a film.” And when that happens nothing can dent his conviction… some producers may have tried to prevail over him, ‘bring in a hero to save the heroine in Apurva.’ But he stuck to his guns… just as the fearless heroine Apurva does.