Vishal Bhardwaj facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Vishal Bhardwaj
Bhardwaj in 2016
Born	(1965-08-04) 4 August 1965 (age 60) Chandpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
Occupation	Director, producer, writer, music director
Years active	1995–present
Spouse(s)	Rekha Bhardwaj

Vishal Bhardwaj (born on August 4, 1965) is a talented Indian filmmaker, music composer, and singer. He is well-known for his work in Hindi cinema, also called Bollywood. He has won many awards, including nine National Film Awards and a Filmfare Award.

Vishal Bhardwaj started his career as a music composer in 1995 with the children's film Abhay. He became more widely known for his music in Gulzar's film Maachis (1996). For Maachis, he received the Filmfare R. D. Burman Award for New Music Talent. He continued to create music for popular films like Satya (1998) and Godmother (1999). He even won the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for Godmother.

In 2002, Bhardwaj directed his first film, a children's movie called Makdee, and also composed its music. He became famous for writing and directing Indian versions of three classic plays by William Shakespeare. These were Maqbool (2003), based on Macbeth; Omkara (2006), based on Othello; and Haider (2014), based on Hamlet. He has also directed other types of films, such as the action movie Kaminey and the comedy 7 Khoon Maaf (2011).

Besides directing, Vishal Bhardwaj also produces films through his company, VB Pictures. He has helped write and produce films like Ishqiya (2010), its sequel Dedh Ishqiya (2014), and the drama Talvar (2015). He often creates the music for his own films and works closely with the famous lyricist Gulzar. Vishal Bhardwaj is married to the singer Rekha Bhardwaj. He is also a board member of the Mumbai Academy of the Moving Image.

Early Life and Interests

Vishal Bhardwaj was born on August 4, 1965, in Chandpur, a city in Uttar Pradesh, India. His mother, Satya Bhardwaj, was a homemaker. His father, Ram Bhardwaj, worked as a sugarcane inspector and also wrote poems and songs for Hindi films.

Vishal lived in Najibabad until he finished fifth grade. Later, his family moved to Meerut. In Meerut, he was a talented cricket player and even played for his state's under-19 team. One day, he broke his thumb during practice, which stopped him from playing for a year. Around the same time, his father passed away, and he could not continue his cricket career.

When he was seventeen, Vishal composed a song. His father shared it with music director Usha Khanna, who used it in the 1985 film Yaar Kasam. Vishal then moved to Delhi to study at Hindu College, University of Delhi. There, he met his future wife, Rekha Bhardwaj, who is also a playback singer. He enjoys playing tennis in his free time.

Journey in Filmmaking

Vishal Bhardwaj started his career by playing the harmonium for friends who were ghazal singers. After some years, he worked for a music company called CBS in Delhi. He later moved to Mumbai to become a music composer. Interestingly, he decided to direct films mainly to create more opportunities to compose music.

He became very interested in film direction after watching Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction (1994) and Krzysztof Kieślowski's TV series Dekalog at a film festival.

Music Composer Work

In 1995, Vishal Bhardwaj began his journey as a music composer with the children's film Abhay. He also composed music for Fauji (1995) and Sanshodhan (1996). In 1996, he was the music director for Gulzar's Maachis. For this film, he won the Filmfare R. D. Burman Award for New Music Talent. Maachis showed how young people were affected by the troubled times in Punjab in the 1980s. Its music became very popular among college students.

He continued to work with Gulzar on TV shows like Alice in Wonderland. His other music projects included Betaabi (1997), Satya (1998), and Hu Tu Tu (1999). At the 46th National Film Awards, Bhardwaj won the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for his highly praised music in Godmother (1999).

In 2010, he composed the music for Ishqiya, a film he also produced. This earned him his second National Film Award for Best Music Direction. He also composed music for the Hindi version of Jungle Book Shōnen Mowgli, an anime based on Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. Besides films, Bhardwaj has created music for albums like Sunset Point (2000). He often works with lyricist Gulzar.

Writer and Director Work

Vishal Bhardwaj made his debut as a director with the children's film Makdee (2002). The film starred Shabana Azmi and Shweta Prasad and told the story of twin girls and a supposed witch. Makdee was shown at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival.

Bhardwaj was inspired to turn William Shakespeare's play Macbeth into a gangster film after reading a short version of it. He had also seen Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood (1957), which was also based on Macbeth. This led him to create Maqbool (2003), set in the Mumbai underworld. The film was shown at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival and the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. Critics praised Maqbool for its smart mix of dark and funny moments. It was even called one of the "100 greatest Indian films of all time" by CNN-IBN in 2013.

In 2006, Bhardwaj adapted another Shakespeare play, Othello, into the film Omkara. This movie was set against the political background of Uttar Pradesh. It featured a great cast including Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, and Saif Ali Khan. Omkara premiered at the 6th Marrakech International Film Festival. Bhardwaj received a Special Jury Award for the film. While critics loved Omkara, it did not earn much money at the box office in India, but it did well in North America and the United Kingdom.

Bhardwaj's next film was the children's movie The Blue Umbrella (2005), based on Ruskin Bond's novel. It won the National Film Award for Best Children's Film in 2005. He then directed Blood Brothers (2007), a short film about HIV/AIDS. This film was part of a series called 'AIDS JaaGo', created with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In the same year, he wrote for the film Dus Kahaniyaan.

In 2009, Bhardwaj directed the action film Kaminey, starring Shahid Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra. The film tells the story of twin brothers who are rivals. Critics gave Kaminey positive reviews, with Anupama Chopra calling it "the best Bollywood film I've seen this year." Kaminey was also a financial success.

Bhardwaj in 2012

His next film was 7 Khoon Maaf (2011), based on Ruskin Bond's short story Susanna's Seven Husbands. The story is about Susanna (played by Priyanka Chopra) who marries and then murders seven husbands while searching for love. The film received positive reviews from critics.

In 2013, Bhardwaj directed Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola, a political satire set in a village in Haryana. It starred Anushka Sharma and Imran Khan. Bhardwaj also choreographed a song in the film. The movie received mixed reviews and did not perform very well at the box office.

In 2014, Bhardwaj made his stage debut with the opera A Flowering Tree. Later that year, he completed his Shakespearean trilogy with Haider, based on Hamlet. Set during the Kashmir conflict of 1995, the film starred Shahid Kapoor. Haider was highly praised by critics, though it caused some debate for its portrayal of the conflict. CNN-IBN's Rajeev Masand called it "an elegant, thrilling film." At the 62nd National Film Awards, Bhardwaj won awards for Best Music Director and Best Dialogues for Haider.

After a break, Bhardwaj directed Rangoon in 2016, a romantic drama set during World War II. He explained that few people know India was involved in that war, with Indian soldiers fighting each other on the Burma border. The film received mixed reviews and did not do well at the box office.

In 2018, Bhardwaj wrote, co-produced, and directed Pataakha, about two quarrelsome sisters. It was based on a short story by Charan Singh Pathik. Critics found the film "real and gritty."

Producer Work

Vishal Bhardwaj produces his own films under his company, VB Pictures. In 2010, he produced the film Ishqiya, directed by Abhishek Chaubey, who had worked with Bhardwaj before. The film did moderately well at the box office. He also partnered with Ekta Kapoor's Balaji Motion Pictures to produce the thriller Ek Thi Daayan in 2013. This film, about witchcraft, was profitable.

His next production was Dedh Ishqiya, a sequel to Ishqiya. This film was a success with both critics and audiences. In 2015, Bhardwaj wrote and co-produced Meghna Gulzar's drama Talvar. This film was based on the real-life 2008 Noida double murder case. Talvar premiered at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival and received positive reviews in India.

Playback Singer Work

Besides composing music, Vishal Bhardwaj has also sung many songs for films. These include songs for Omkara, No Smoking, Kaminey, 7 Khoon Maaf, Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola, and Haider.

Filmmaking Style

Vishal Bhardwaj's films often feature complex characters and stories. He frequently adapts short stories and plays for his movies. For example, The Blue Umbrella and 7 Khoon Maaf were based on Ruskin Bond's stories. His famous films Maqbool, Omkara, and Haider were adaptations of William Shakespeare's tragedies.

Some of Bhardwaj's films are inspired by real-life events. Haider showed the Kashmir conflict, and Talvar was based on a real murder case. He often works with writer-lyricist Gulzar, whom he calls his "mentor." His films often feel like documentaries, showing real situations. For instance, Haider was co-written by journalist Basharat Peer, who witnessed the Kashmir conflict.

Bhardwaj is influenced by filmmakers like Krzysztof Kieślowski, Satyajit Ray, and Akira Kurosawa. Kieślowski's Dekalog (1989) especially inspired him to become a filmmaker. Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has said that even Bhardwaj's less successful films are still more interesting than many other directors' good work.

Awards and Recognition

Vishal Bhardwaj has won many awards for his work. He won the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for Godmother. He then won two awards in a row: The Blue Umbrella won the National Film Award for Best Children's Film, and Omkara received the National Film Award – Special Jury Award.

He won his second National Film Award for Best Music Direction for his film Ishqiya. At the 62nd National Film Awards, Bhardwaj won his third Best Music Director award and the Best Screenplay award for Haider. In 2016, the Government of Uttar Pradesh honored him with the Yash Bharti Award for his contributions to cinema. He also received his second National Film Award for Best Screenplay for writing Talvar.

Bhardwaj's Shakespearean films—Maqbool, Omkara, and Haider—were shown in London as part of an event celebrating 400 years since William Shakespeare's death. In 2019, Bhardwaj won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Music Director for his second Malayalam film Carbon.

Filmography

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Director

Music director

Music Video

See also

In Spanish: Vishal Bhardwaj para niños