Abhinav,the younger brother of Anurag Kahsyap,makes his directorial debut There is a Kashyap directing a movie in Bollywood,and this time,it is not Anurag. It is his younger brother Abhinav,36,who makes his directorial debut in September with Dabangg,a film that has none of his elder brothers fascination for dark and macabre stories. Instead,Kashyap Jr is gunning for box office glory with an out-and-out masala film. Everybody is expecting me to make a film like Dev D or Gulaal but it would be foolish for me to get into that territory. I hope to assert my own identity through this film. A commercial masala film is something that Anurag has never attempted, says Abhinav over phone from Mumbai. Abhinav,who has co-written the script with Dilip Shukle (of Damini and Andaz Apna Apna fame),is hardly a novice in the film industry. He has spent over 14 years writing scripts and directing serials for the small screen,and even dabbled in Bollywood scriptwriting with Manorama Six Feet Under in 2007 and 13B last year. These were only small favours for close friends. I was waiting for the opportune time to write my own story and direct my own film. The effort has been on since 2003, says Abhinav. Unlike Anurag,whose childhood was spent watching Hindi classics on video cassettes and European cinema in college,Abhinav says he went to boarding school and was more interested in sports and outdoor activities. I rarely watched films at the hostel TV room. During the summer holidays,I did not spend much time watching movies,unlike Anurag who would be engrossed with some Hindi film or the other, recalls Abhinav,who is two years younger to Anurag. He recalls that Sholay was their all-time favourite. A graduate in English from Hansraj college,the bond between the two has always been about friendship,he adds. While Anurag turned his focus towards acting,Abhinav eyed the corporate world. I was like any other graduate,unsure about life. So I settled on preparing for my MBA exams. I had nothing to do with acting, recalls Abhinav. But pushed by financial constraints,Abhinav followed his brother to Mumbai to live under the same roof. That never happened. We lived separately in single-room apartments, he recalls,working part-time. Taking up a chance offer for scriptwriting to earn pocket money sealed his destiny as Abhinav discovered his passion for writing. I could do well in this. I was armed with an English degree,had a command over the language and was more articulate than others. The only scriptwriters at the time were failed actors, adds Abhinav,saying that the brothers started discussing films more often. The discussions gradually got them working together in Bollywood films Satya and Jung . I was occupied by back-to-back TV assignments, he says. Abhinav admits he is a huge admirer of his brothers cinema. They discuss work when they catch up on rare occasions in between their hectic schedules. We dont bump into each other as often as people might assume. Though we dont stay far away from each other we hardly get to meet, he says,explaining how he incorporated minor inputs by Anurag for Dabangg after discussions. For now,Abhinav is content carving his own niche in the industry,and is not looking forward to working with his brother. It is a creative and independent space. We like our freedom and it is always better to work at your pace. In the middle of post-production workediting followed by dubbing Abhinav is in no mood to reveal the plot of his film yet. All he will say is that it is based in a fictitious location in the rural heartland of Uttar Pradesh,Lalganj,and stars Salman Khan as a policeman. Among the other names are Arbaaz Khan and Sonu Sood.
