In 1999, Madhur Bhandarkar embarked on his directorial journey with Trishakti. Reflecting on this milestone, he expresses disbelief, saying, “I just can’t believe it has been 25 years. I made 15 movies in this span, and I am very happy with those films. I’ve always been an independent filmmaker and never went to any camp, lobby or kothari. The best part about this journey is that I made movies that I believed in.”

The 55-year-old reveals that over the last 25 years, he has acquired various tags, such as “women-centric filmmaker”, and his style being described as “topical, hard-hitting, real cinema”. “I am okay with it,” he insists, adding, “Even the current generation connects with the films I have made. My films have aged well.”

Bhandarkar boasts some cult classics to his credit, including Chandni Bar (2001), Page 3 (2005) and Fashion (2008). However, the fate of Trishakti did lead Bhandarkar to doubt himself.

He divulges, “Those days, commercial cinema had a certain template, and I had to make Trishakti fit into that. Even though I didn’t want to do it, I was under duress. But it bombed very badly, and I was completely disturbed. I thought my career was over.”

Fortunately, things took a 180-degree turn after his next release, Chandni Bar. The Tabu-starrer emerged as a big hit, bringing National Awards for the director and the actor.

He shares, “It was the first female-led film that became a success not only in multiplexes but also on single screens. I made the movie when people used to make big-budgeted and male-centric films. The film was nominated in the popular category with big films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha and Dil Chahta Hai. It was evident that our film made a strong noise and disrupted the whole grammar of cinema.”

He goes on to insist, “If Trishakti was a hit, I would never have made a Chandni Bar in my life.”