On the off chance that there’s a consistent theme to Shekhar Kapur’s life, it’s irony He considered chartered accountancy upon his parent’s recommendation – his mother was an on-screen actor and he is the nephew of Dev Anand. When he did at long last choose to confront the... Read more
On the off chance that there’s a consistent theme to Shekhar Kapur’s life, it’s irony
He considered chartered accountancy upon his parent’s recommendation – his mother was an on-screen actor and he is the nephew of Dev Anand.
When he did at long last choose to confront the camera, he wasn’t especially effective – until he decided to go behind it.
His first directorial role in Masoom, remains one of his finest – a perfect combination of marriage, loyalty and misery that created new standards in Indian silver screen. In any case, what came next solidified his notoriety for being a storyteller of remarkable aptitude: the fantastical science fiction film Mr India, that recreated Anil Kapoor’s vocation.
It was however Bandit Queen – his biopic on the life of Phoolan Devi – that brought him global consideration when it was welcome to film festivals all over the world, including Cannes, and built up Kapur as a director with a gift for creating exceptional characters.
His next film, Elizabeth, his anecdotal retelling of the life of the British ruler was nominated for seven Oscars and was a runaway success around the world.
But Kapur has gone on to show that he has an energy for filmmaking in its most genuine aesthetic frame; he doesn’t make films for monetary gain, but rather passionate ones, and this is never more clear than in Paani, the film he presented at the Cannes Film Festival in 2010.
The story is a cutting edge dramatization focused on the fight for water in Mumbai, and in light of Kapur’s firm conviction that the world is on the very edge of water wars – is a vehicle not only for true to life investigation but rather an indication of his sense of duty regarding a cause he has been involved with for some time now.