Apurva Asrani (born 21 March 1978) is a National Award, Filmfare Award & Screen Award winning filmmaker based in Goa, India. He has written the human rights drama ''
Aligarh
Aligarh (; formerly known as Allygarh, and Kol) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district, and lies northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately southeast of the capita ...
'' (2016), the courtroom drama
Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors (2020), has co-written & edited the film ''
Shahid
''Shaheed'' ( , , ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); ...
'' (2013), has edited the popular gangster film ''
Satya
''Satya'' (Sanskrit: सत्य; IAST: ''satya)'' is a Sanskrit word loosely translated as truth, essence. A. A. Macdonell, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Asian Educational Services, , pp. 330–331 It also refers to a virtue in Indian relig ...
'' (1998) & also the webseries ''
Made in Heaven
''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release s ...
'' (2019).
He also the director of the ''
Tera Mera Pyar'' (2005) music videos for
Sony Music India
Sony Music Entertainment India Pvt. Ltd. is the record label operated by Sony in Chennai, India. The company began operation in 1997, and it was the first record company in India to be 100% foreign-owned, with Sony being a Japanese corporatio ...
.
Apurva made his webseries writing debut with the 2021 Disney Hotstar show
Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors. The show starring Pankaj Tripathi, Kirti Kulhari, Anupriya Goenka & Dipti Naval received glowing reviews and garnered record viewership for Disney Hotstar.
In August 2021,
Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors became the first Indian series to win 'Best Drama Series' in South Asia at the Content Asia Awards in Singapore. Apurva was subsequently nominated for a Filmfare Award for 'Best Adapted Screenplay' and for a Critics Choice Award by the Film Critics Guild for 'Best Writing'.
Satya & Early career
Apurva began his career in 1995 as an assistant on the popular
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
countdown show ''Bpl Oye!'' on Channel
At 19 he became a
film editor
Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film which increasingly involves the use of digital technology.
The film edit ...
on the film ''
Satya
''Satya'' (Sanskrit: सत्य; IAST: ''satya)'' is a Sanskrit word loosely translated as truth, essence. A. A. Macdonell, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Asian Educational Services, , pp. 330–331 It also refers to a virtue in Indian relig ...
'', directed by
Ram Gopal Varma
Penmetsa Ram Gopal Varma (born 7 April 1962), often referred to by his initials RGV, is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer, known for his works in Telugu cinema in addition to Bollywood, Hindi, Kannada cinema, Kannada language ...
. His frenetic narrative device was celebrated by critics and audiences alike and he went on to win the Filmfare Award for Best Editor for it. He was also the youngest ever recipient of that award. He then went on to edit Sunhil Sippy's bilingual comedy ''Snip (film).''
Apurva's other work includes the gang war film ''Chhal'' directed by
Hansal Mehta
Hansal Mehta (born 29 April 1968) is an Indian filmmaker. He started his career with television show ''Khana Khazana'' (1993–2000) and later moved on to directing films like ''Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar!!'' (2000), ''Yeh Kya Ho Raha Hai?'' (2002) and ...
. Critic Subhash K Jha wrote in his review 'The real hero of Chhal is Apurva Asrani's editing'. Apurva edited
Anupam Kher's directorial debut ''
Om Jai Jagadish
''Om Jai Jagadish'' is a 2002 Indian Hindi drama film directed by Anupam Kher and was his directorial debut, and the only movie he has directed till date. The film stars Waheeda Rehman, Anil Kapoor, Fardeen Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Mahima Chaud ...
'' and also collaborated with
Nagesh Kukunoor
Nagesh Kukunoor (born 30 March 1967) is an Indian film director, producer, screenwriter and actor known for his works predominantly in Hindi cinema, and few Telugu language films. He is known for his works in parallel cinema, such as ''Hyderab ...
on his
Akshay Kumar
Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia (born 9 September 1967), known professionally as Akshay Kumar (), is an Indian-born naturalised Canadian Quote: "(Former prime minister Stephen) Harper campaigned in 2011 alongside one of Modi's biggest celebrity backer ...
starrer ''Tasveer 8x10'' as supervising editor and as film editor on ''
Aashayein
''Aashayein'' () is a 2010 Indian Hindi-language drama film written and directed by Nagesh Kukunoor, and produced by Percept Picture Company and T-Series. It stars John Abraham and Sonal Sehgal. The film revolves around Rahul, a gambler whose l ...
'', starring
John Abraham
John Abraham (born 17 December 1972) is an Indian actor, film producer, writer and former model working in Hindi films. He has won a National Film Award and received five Filmfare nominations.
After modelling for advertisements and companies ...
.
In 2005, Apurva directed the music videos of Sony Music India's album ''Tera Mera Pyar'' and launched actress
Nimrat Kaur
Nimrat Kaur (born 13 March 1982) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films and on American television. She began her career as a print model and went on to act in theater. After brief appearances in a few films, Kaur starred in Anurag Ka ...
in it. The title track, "Tera Mera Pyar", was sung by
Kumar Sanu
Kedarnath Bhattacharya (born 20 October 1957), better known as Kumar Sanu, is an Indian playback singer. He is known as the King of Melody in Bollywood. He is famous for singing thousands of Bollywood Hindi songs. Apart from Hindi, he has al ...
; "Yeh Kya Hua" was sung by
Shreya Ghosal
Shreya Ghoshal (born 12 March 1984) is an Indian singer and television personality. One of the highest-paid and most well-established playback singers of Indian cinema, she has received four National Film Awards, four Kerala State Film Awar ...
and composed by UK-based artists Partners in Rhyme. ''Tera Mera Pyar'' won album of the year at the Sahara Music Awards in San Francisco.
In March 2006, Apurva represented India in ''Editing Fashion'', a multimedia experiment for UK-based showstudio.com. Apurva's short film ''Imperfect Moon'' was showcased along with the films of Oscar nominated British director,
Mike Figgis
Michael Figgis (born 28 February 1948) is an English film director, screenwriter, and composer. He was nominated for two Academy Awards for his work in ''Leaving Las Vegas'' (1995). Figgis was the founding patron of the independent filmmakers o ...
and
Wong Kar Wai
Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1958) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films are characterised by nonlinear narratives, atmospheric music, and vivid cinematography involving bold, saturated colours. A pivotal figure ...
's editor
William Chang
William Chang Suk-ping ( zh, 張叔平; born 12 November 1953) is a Hong Kong production designer, costume designer and film editor. Along with cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Chang is an important collaborator with Hong Kong film director ...
.
On the UK stage, Apurva has collaborated with a British
theatre company
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
RIFCO Arts
Rifco Arts is a theatre company which focuses on bringing British Asian stories to the stage, and audiences from the community into theatres. The company was founded in 1999 by director Pravesh Kumar.
Rifco is an Arts Council National Portfolio ...
to write dialogue for three successful UK touring productions: ''Bollywood: Yet Another Love Story'' (2000/2003), ''The Deranged Marriage'' (2006) and ''There’s Something About Simmy'' (2007).
He is the editor and additional screenplay writer of the film ''
Shahid
''Shaheed'' ( , , ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); ...
'' and is also the writer and editor of the internationally acclaimed ''
Aligarh
Aligarh (; formerly known as Allygarh, and Kol) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district, and lies northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately southeast of the capita ...
''.
''
Shahid
''Shaheed'' ( , , ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); ...
''
Apurva edited Hansal Mehta's ''
Shahid
''Shaheed'' ( , , ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); ...
'' (2012) that was produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur & UTV. The film is based on the true story of slain lawyer
Shahid Azmi
Shahid Azmi (1977 – 11 February 2010) was an Indian lawyer, best known for defending cases of persons accused of terrorism. Azmi was accused of crime at a young age; in 1992, aged 15, he was arrested for violence during the 1992 Bombay riots. ...
who fought several pro-bono cases in India. ''Shahid'' world-premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 9 September 2012 and went on to win the 'Silver Prize' at the Mumbai International Film Festival (MAMI). Director Hansal Mehta had this to say about Apurva's contribution to the film – 'Apurva, besides editing the film also shaped the narrative into a seamless, linear progression for which I have credited him for screenplay. If the film communicates a compelling story a lot of credit for it goes to Apu'.
'' CityLights'', '' Children of War'', ''
Waiting
Waiting, Waitin, Waitin', or The Waiting may refer to:
Film
* ''Waiting'' (1991 film), a film by Jackie McKimmie
* ''Waiting...'' (film), a 2005 film starring Ryan Reynolds
* ''Waiting'' (2007 film), a film by Zarina Bhimji
* ''Waiting'' (20 ...
''
In 2014, Apurva edited Fox Star Studios & Vishesh Films ''
CityLights'' starring
Rajkummar Rao
Rajkummar Rao (born Raj Kumar Yadav; 31 August 1984) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi films. He has appeared in more than 30 films since 2010, and is the recipient of several accolades including a National Film Award, three ...
&
Manav Kaul
Manav Kaul (born 19 December 1976) is an Indian theatre director, playwright, author, actor and filmmaker. He was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the films '' Tumhari Sulu'' (2017) and '' Saina'' (2021 ...
. The film received glowing reviews from leading critics.
Rahul Desai in his
Mumbai Mirror
The ''Mumbai Mirror'' is an Indian English-language newspaper published in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Launched in 2005 as a compact daily newspaper, its coverage focuses on city specific local news and civic issues concerning education, healthcare an ...
review of Citylights said: Mehta and writer-editor Asrani pull off a rare feat here. They not only choose the right film to adapt—based solely on its theme and universal topicality—but build upon the original, without being overambitious.
In the same year, Apurva also edited Mrityunjay Devvrat's ''
Children of War'' (formerly titled 'The Bastard Child'), a stark portrayal of the Bangladesh genocide of 1971. The film ran for a record-breaking 12 weeks in Bangladesh and is the only foreign produced film in history to have won a Bangladeshi National Award.
In 2015, Apurva edited Viacom 18's 'Dharam Sankat Mein', an adaptation of the British hit ''
The Infidel''.
In 2016, Apurva co-edited ''Waiting'' produced by Manish Mundra, directed by Anu Menon. The film starring Naseeruddin Shah &
Kalki Koechlin
Kalki Koechlin (; born 10 January 1984) is a French actress and writer who works in Hindi films. Known for her unconventional body of work, she is the recipient of such accolades as a National Film Award, a Filmfare Award, and two Screen Awar ...
received extremely positive reviews.
''
Aligarh
Aligarh (; formerly known as Allygarh, and Kol) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district, and lies northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately southeast of the capita ...
''
In 2016, Apurva made his debut as a full-fledged screenwriter by writing the screenplay and dialogues of ''
Aligarh
Aligarh (; formerly known as Allygarh, and Kol) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district, and lies northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately southeast of the capita ...
'' a human rights biopic.
The film premiered at the Busan International Film Festival and UK premiered at the BFI London Film Festival. It also enjoyed the rare honour of being the first Indian film to open Jio MAMI (Mumbai International Film Festival) in 16 years.
The film was among the best reviewed films of the year. Shubhra Gupta in her Indian Express review of the film wrote 'Like in 'Shahid', Hansal Mehta and scriptwriter Apurva Asrani have come up with a lead character and a film which shines with authenticity and emotional heft, and which leaves you thinking.'
Anupama Chopra in her Hindustan Times review of the film wrote 'Hansal and writer Apurva Asrani have mined from real events but their dramatisation of Siras' tragedy isn't shrill or militant.' Stutee Ghosh in her review in The Quint wrote 'Aligarh is an assiduously made piece of brilliance.'
Apurva was also the editor of the film.
''
Simran
Simran (Gurmukhi: ਸਿਮਰਨ; hi, सिमरण, सिमरन ; from Sanskrit: , ''smaraṇa'', 'to remember, reminisce, recollect'), in spirituality, is a Sanskrit word referring to the continuous remembrance of the finest aspect of ...
''
In 2017, Apurva wrote the screenplay & dialogues of ''
Simran
Simran (Gurmukhi: ਸਿਮਰਨ; hi, सिमरण, सिमरन ; from Sanskrit: , ''smaraṇa'', 'to remember, reminisce, recollect'), in spirituality, is a Sanskrit word referring to the continuous remembrance of the finest aspect of ...
''. The film told the story of a desi girl in the US who turns into a bungling bank robber, and had actress
Kangana Ranaut
Kangna Amardeep Ranaut (; born 23 March 1987) is an Indian actress and filmmaker who works in Hindi films. Known for her work in female-led films, she is the recipient of several awards, including four National Film Awards and five Filmfar ...
playing the titular role. But before its release itself, ''
Simran
Simran (Gurmukhi: ਸਿਮਰਨ; hi, सिमरण, सिमरन ; from Sanskrit: , ''smaraṇa'', 'to remember, reminisce, recollect'), in spirituality, is a Sanskrit word referring to the continuous remembrance of the finest aspect of ...
'' made news for a controversy regarding sharing of writing credits between Kangana & Apurva.
Uday Bhatia in his Livemint review of the film said 'Having watched Simran I can understand why they’d squabble over the writing credits (officially, Apurva is story, screenplay and dialogue; Kangana is additional story and dialogue). Praful is a fantastically etched character, all quirks and hard edges and nervous energy, like a '40s screwball comedienne crossed with Gena Rowlands.'
''
Made in Heaven
''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release s ...
''
Apurva made his foray into the digital space by editing the drama-comedy series ''
Made in Heaven
''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release s ...
'' by
Zoya Akhtar
Zoya Akhtar (born 14 October 1972) is an Indian film director and screenwriter who works in Hindi cinema. After completing a diploma in filmmaking from NYU, she assisted directors such as Mira Nair, Tony Gerber and Dev Benegal, before becomin ...
and
Reema Kagti
Reema Kagti (real name: Reema Kakati) is an Indian film director and screenwriter, who works in Bollywood. She made her debut as a director in the critically acclaimed ''Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd.'' (2007), which was followed by the neo-noir, ...
. The show, which premiered on Amazon Prime on 8 March 2019, is a bitter-sweet behind-the-scenes look at the big fat Indian wedding and features a leading character who is gay. The show garnered superlative reviews from leading critics. Rahul Desai in his Film Companion review said 'there's something to be said about the monumental manner in which homosexuality is normalized, especially in the bedroom. I don't remember when sex or affection between two men, or in fact two humans in general, was last shot with such disarming sensitivity'.
Ankur Pathak in his Huffington Post review said 'After decades of suffering regressive soap-operas on Indian television, we finally have a show that inverts every trope we’ve seen on Indian TV and makes a powerful commentary about the vulgar exhibition of power and wealth and its intersection with gender and class to piece together an impeccably feminist masterpiece.'
Raja Sen
Raja Sen (born 10 November 1955) is an Indian film and television director and the winner of three National Film Awards from Kolkata, West Bengal, India. He is the father of actress Rimi Sen.
Career
Raja Sen first received recognition with ''S ...
in his Livemint review called ''
Made in Heaven
''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release s ...
'' 'possibly the best Indian web series so far'.
Apurva edited the first four episodes of the nine part series. The first two were directed by
Zoya Akhtar
Zoya Akhtar (born 14 October 1972) is an Indian film director and screenwriter who works in Hindi cinema. After completing a diploma in filmmaking from NYU, she assisted directors such as Mira Nair, Tony Gerber and Dev Benegal, before becomin ...
and the other two were directed by show runner
Nitya Mehra Nitya is a given name. Notable people with the name include:
Hinduism
* Nitya, a category of being used in the logical framework of Vedanta
* Nitya-samsarins, as classified by Shri Madhvacharya, are souls which are eternally transmigrating
* Nitya ...
.
Awards
Apurva shared the
Filmfare Award for Best Editing
The Filmfare Best Editing Award is given by the '' Filmfare'' magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films.
Superlatives
Most Awards
* Sreekar Prasad – 4
* Hrishikesh Mukherjee – 3
* Raj Kapoor – 3
* Sanjay Verma – 3 ...
with Bhanodaya for their edit of ''Satya'' at the Filmfare Awards held in 1999.
In 2001, Apurva won the
National Film Award for Best Editing
The National Film Award for Best Editing is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of several awards presente ...
for ''Snip!'', a bilingual comedy directed by Sunhil Sippy. The National Awards citation read, "For creating an evocative rhythm enhancing the pace of the narrative while aesthetically maintaining the unit of form and content."
He was also nominated for a Zee Cine Award for his edit of Hansal Mehta's ''Chhal (film)'' in 2001.
In 2013 Apurva won the Life Ok Screen Award for Best Screenplay for ''
Shahid
''Shaheed'' ( , , ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); ...
'' which he shared with director Hansal Mehta.
In 2017, Apurva was nominated for 'Best Editing' & 'Best Original Screenplay' for
Aligarh
Aligarh (; formerly known as Allygarh, and Kol) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district, and lies northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately southeast of the capita ...
at the South African International Film Festival, also known as the RapidLion Awards.
In 2019, Apurva was nominated in the 'Best Editing' category for ''
Made in Heaven
''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release s ...
'' at the Critics Choice Awards by the Film Critics Guild.
For his work on
Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors, Apurva was nominated for a Filmfare Award in 2021 and for a Critics Choice Award in 2022 in the 'Best Writing' category.
Filmography
References
Further reading
Editing is storytellingApurva Asrani at Show StudioApurva Asraniat
The Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asrani, Apurva
Screenwriters from Mumbai
1978 births
Living people
Sindhi people
Hindi film editors
Indian television directors
LGBT film directors
Indian LGBT screenwriters
Best Editor National Film Award winners
Film editors from Maharashtra
21st-century LGBT people