Writer-lyricist-actor Piyush Mishra has taken a sharp swipe at filmmaker Anurag kashyapsaying he dislikes the second halves of many of his films, including a few he himself acted in. In a joint interview with Manoj bajpayee, Piyush said that he is particularly annoyed with Gulaal, whose second half, in his view, “spoiled the entire experience.”While he does revisit Gangs of Wasseypur once in a while, Piyush admitted he avoids Gulaal altogether. Anurag, who was also part of the chat, laughed off the criticism and remarked that Piyush never sugarcoats his opinions—he simply calls films “bakwaas” and moves on, without explanation.
‘He ruins his own movies’
“I’m sorry, Anurag, I know I’m in the film, but I didn’t get the second half of Gulaal. I have no idea what you did,” Piyush said bluntly, adding that Anurag has a habit of sabotaging his own work. According to him, it’s as if the filmmaker can’t believe he has made something good, so he deliberately ruins it. “He makes half a good movie, then he spoils it. Gulaal was a good movie, and he went and spoiled it,” he told Humans of Cinema.The actor didn’t stop there. Speaking about Dev D, he said the first half was a classic, but the film lost its way soon after. Manoj Bajpayee joined in the banter, joking that Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s cameo “saved” the second half.Piyush also criticised Gangs of Wasseypur, saying that while the first part was strong, Anurag “lost his mind” in the continuation. “I thought Dev D would be a film on alcoholism, and then it became something strange,” he added.
‘There will be time before Anurag and after Anurag’
Despite the criticism, both Piyush and Manoj acknowledged Anurag’s stature as a filmmaker. “When the history of Hindi cinema is written, there will be time before Anurag Kashyap and after Anurag Kashyap,” Piyush said, before cutting himself short with a laugh, while Anurag took the comments sportingly.The director, meanwhile, has multiple projects lined up. Kennedy is still awaiting release, two years after its Cannes premiere, Bandar was recently screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, and his upcoming film Nishaanchi is slated for a theatrical release.
