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Abhinav Kashyap: What more impact could a new director have created with a film about the heartland of India when fancy foreign locations are the order of the day? With Dabangg, Kashyap has shifted the focus to India, Indian stories, Indian characters, Indian locations and Indian sentiments. Yuppie directors, take note!
Punit Malhotra: He may have got his spellings wrong in his debut film, I Hate Luv Storys, but the sms-age director sure got his luv story – sorry, love story – right in his first film.
Parmeet Sethi: The critics may have bashed Badmaash Company but the film did manage to yield a profit to its producers. In other words, actor Parmeet Sethi should not regret his decision to multi-task. He can continue to act and direct.
Abhishek Sharma: His comic sense was quite different from the other directors and that’s what set Tere Bin Laden apart – besides its odd title, of course. Not only did he direct the comedy but also wrote it himself.
Abhishek Chaubey: Dil to bachcha hai ji & Ibn-e-batuta may have been Vishal Bhardwaj’s gift to his assistant, Abhishek Chaubey, when he went independent with Ishqiya, directed for the mentor & Shemaroo, but the scenes had an unmistakable stamp about them – and one is not just talking about the ultra-bold scenes between Vidya Balan, Naseeruddin Shah & Arshad Warsi. Even if it didn’t get the desired ishq of the audience, Chaubey has a future in the industry.
Vijay Lalwani: Karthik Calling Karthik may have been found to be too weird in its last part but, in all fairness to debut-making director Vijay Lalwani, the first half had a certain freshness about it. Success may not have come calling but Bollywood could call Lalwani yet another time.
Vikramaditya Motwane: There must be something in this guy to have gotten away with his young teenaged hero slapping his father in his Udaan. There are some things which you simply can’t show in Hindi films for fear that they just don’t go with the Indian psyche – & slapping one’s parents probably tops the list. But Motwane made the father’s character so detestable that the audience rejoiced rather than squirming in their seats, when the young boy slapped his dad.
Anusha Rizvi: To carry off an entire film as a satire without caring to include other ingredients such as emotions, romance and action – that too, with some rank newcomers who weren’t great-looking – must have needed guts and talent. Peepli Live may have had the Aamir Khan stamp in marketing but it is a fact that it was Anusha’s script and direction.
Maneesh Sharma: He may not have rounded off the story of his debut film, Band Baaja Baaraat, effectively, but his characters, Bittoo and Shruti, were cute enough to find a place in people’s hearts.
Habib Faisal: So heartwarming! That was the best way to describe Habib’s first directorial venture, Do Dooni Chaar. The film may have neither doubled nor quadrupled its investment, it may not even have recovered its cost, but still, Habib Faisal is here to stay.
