Anurag was surprised when the film became a hit. Dev.D was not just loved for its unique story and characters but also for the offbeat music that made the film even more memorable and iconic.
Director and actor Anurag Kashyap's film depicted a controversial take on Devdas and featured Abhay Deol, Kalki Koechlin, and Mahie Gill. Both audiences and critics loved the film. However, the director recently revealed that making the film was challenging as multiple actresses refused to audition for the roles, and he even got slapped by an actress' boyfriend due to the script.
In a candid conversation at the Marrakech International Film Festival, Anurag Kashyap opened up about the challenges he faced to make the movie that we love today. As per The Indian Express, Anurag said, “I made the two women the protagonists of the film, and I didn’t hold back on the language or anything. Girls refused to audition for the film when they read the script. I got slapped by one actress’ boyfriend, who said, ‘How dare you send the script to my girlfriend?’. I was like, ‘Okay, sorry’. My producer threw the script down and called it vulgar. It actually got made because of my producer’s wife, who loved it.” Anurag referred to Ronnie Screwvala’s wife, who believed in the script and supported Anurag in making the film.
He also said he wanted to tackle Devdas in a different way than it was done in the novel. Anurag said, “I took the three characters of Devdas, and subverted every expectation that the audience might have. What really shocked people was that the two female characters in the most misogynistic book had agency. They had more agency than the guy; the guy had nothing. I had women fighting for the film, standing by me, but men told me that I’m spoiling the culture of the country. There was a two-way fight… I changed the famous ending of Devdas because the book thrives on creating empathy for this despicable character, who dies, so you’re supposed to feel sad. I said, ‘I’m not going to kill him.'"
Anurag was surprised when the film became a hit. Dev.D was not just loved for its unique story and characters but also for the offbeat music that made the film even more memorable and iconic. It resonated with the younger generation, and moviegoers appreciated a fresh and unique way of storytelling, setting it apart from conventional Bollywood films.