As the saying commonly goes, 'the Director is the captain of the ship'. And as the captain, the director has to steer the ship (in this case, the film) in the right direction so the audience understands and gets entertained by his vision.
Many a times, a director makes or breaks a film. An ordinary story can turn extraordinary if the director cleverly treats the film. An actor's true talent can be tapped and used well by a director. In 2014, we saw some remarkable directors and their genius work. While there were some directors whose films earned well at the Box Office but their work was criticized by critics and films enthusiasts.
But there have also been some talented filmmakers this year who have fought the odds and dared to narrate some different stories. They have dealt with the not so popular issues and have even earned brickbats for it but their cinema has made us sit and up and take note of things we usually tend to ignore, their cinema has made us think and smile.
So here is it, the top six directors of 2014.
Rajkumar Hirani: The man with the golden touch. With 'PK' earning Rs 200 crores in two weeks, Hirani has become the most successful filmmaker of our times with each of his directorial ventures becoming blockbuster hits. But Hirani doesn't feature on this list for his commercial success but for the though provoking films that he makes. His recent, 'PK' questions our notion of religion which has already sparked off a debate but if we keep aside our sentiments and beliefs and concentrate on the message that the film tries to convey, one can see how there is no one like Hirani who can make a simple tale so endearing. Read the review of 'PK' here.
Anurag Kashyap: The man who bridged the gap between art cinema and commercial cinema with his films has always made hard hitting, realistic films in his career. His film 'Ugly' released at the fag end of 2014 and was one of the most dark, disturbing film of recent years. The film would make you uncomfortable and yet keep you hooked till the end and that's why Kashyap, the 'dark lord' scores.Always. Read the review of 'Ugly' here.
Rajat Kapoor: Rajat Kapoor has, in the past few years, carved a niche in Bollywood, with his unique cinema- which doesn't fall in the blockbuster category yet strike the right chord with the audience. Kapoor's film always score high in the story and performance department and his film 'Aankhon Dekhi' had that right blend. The film revolved around a single dilemma faced by an old man: How reliable is second-hand knowledge or experience? And actor Sanjay Mishra delivered a remarkable performance as the lead protagonist. Read the review of 'Ankhon Dekhi' here.
Vishal Bhardwaj: Vishal Bhardwaj's film's are twisted and very dark and they play havoc in the viewers head. Yet, they have a certain appeal. His adaptation of Shakespeare's 'Hamlet' had Shahid Kapoor playing 'Haider' in a terror stricken, snowy Kashmir. From the detailed screenplay to the marvelous performances by the actors, Bhardwaj scored in almost all departments. We just hope that Shahid Kapoor and Vishal Bhardwaj team up more, because no other director taps Kapoor's actual talent the way Bhardwaj does. Read the review of 'Haider' here.
Vikas Behl: How can a film with no hero work so well? Ask Vikas Bahl and he will show you 'Queen'. The brilliant little film made Kangana Ranaut the pin-up girl for all middle class women throughout the country. Bahl had earlier co-directed the endearing 'Chillar Party' but he went solo with 'Queen' and what a remarkable film it was. From getting the nuances of a middle-class west delhi to perfection to showing the night life of Paris to Rani(Ranaut) re-discovering herself in Amsterdam, Bahl made the film a fun ride throughout. And yes, Mr Bahl, we couldn't have wished for a better ending where Rani leaves her heartless loverboy for a new life. That was just perfection. Read the review of 'Queen' here.
Nitin Kakkar: Debutant director Nitin Kakkar made 'Filmistaan' with a bunch of new, unknown actors which may have got the National Award for the Best Hindi film in 2013, but failed to get a distributor till UTV lapped it up and we can't thank the production house enough for making this brilliant film available to the audience. Kakkar infused humour into the narrative and focused on the fact that love for Bollywood is above all the hatred. The film had no big star, no special song, no big banner attached to it, yet it told the most heart warming story this year 2014. We are dying to watch what Kakkar's has up his sleeves, next. Read the review of 'Filmistaan' here.
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