Tanuja Chandra
Chandra in 2007
Born1969 (age 54–55)
Delhi, India
NationalityIndian
Occupation(s)Film director, writer
Parent
RelativesVikram Chandra (brother)
Anupama Chopra (sister)
Zuni Chopra (niece)

Tanuja Chandra (born 1969) is an Indian film director and writer. Chandra is the daughter of writer Kamna Chandra and sister of author Vikram Chandra and film critic Anupama Chopra. She co-wrote the screenplay of Yash Chopra's Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) and is known for frequently directing women-oriented films where female characters are the main protagonists, notably Dushman (1998) and Sangharsh (1999).[1]

Family

Chandra was born in Delhi.[2] She is the sister of the writer Vikram Chandra and film critic Anupama Chopra. Her mother is film writer Kamna Chandra.[3][4]

Career

Chandra began her career in 1995 and made her directorial debut with the TV series Zameen Aasmaan (TV series)|, starring Tanvi Azmi. In 1996, she directed another television serial along with Shabnam Sukhdev, called Mumkin. In 1997, she wrote the screenplay for Yash Chopra's Dil To Pagal Hai, which was a commercial success.

She went on to collaborate often with Mahesh Bhatt and wrote the screenplay for his film, Zakhm (1998). She also made her cinematic directorial debut with his Dushman in the same year. The movie, starring Kajol in the lead role, received critical praise and performed moderately-well at the box office.

Her next film, Sangharsh (1999), was also produced by Mahesh Bhatt and starred Akshay Kumar, Preity Zinta and Ashutosh Rana in leading roles.[5]

Since then, Chandra has directed several films, many of which went unnoticed. Yet films like Sur – The Melody of Life (2002) and Film Star (2005), which were directed and written by Chandra, received favourable reviews from critics and praise for her work as a director and writer.

Recent films were Zindaggi Rocks (2006), starring Sushmita Sen. Chandra also wrote the story and the screenplay for the film. Her most recent film was Hope and a Little Sugar (2008), was shot entirely in English in the US. In early 2016, She directed a short film Silvat for Zee telefilms, which stars Kartik Aaryan.[6][7]

Tanuja's latest released film is Qarib Qarib Singlle[8] starring Irrfan Khan and Parvathy. She has been working on the development of a television show for Star which will begin production soon. A book titled "BIJNIS WOMEN"[9] of short stories by her has just been published by Penguin Random House.

Filmography

Year Film Director Writer Note
1997 Tamanna No Yes
1997 Dil To Pagal Hai No Yes
1998 Zakhm No Yes
1998 Dushman Yes No
1999 Sangharsh Yes No
2001 Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar Yes No
2002 Sur – The Melody of Life Yes Yes
2005 Film Star[10] Yes Yes
2006 Zindaggi Rocks Yes No
2008 Hope and a Little Sugar Yes Yes
2016 Silvat Yes No Short Film
2017 Qarib Qarib Singlle[11] Yes Yes
2019 A Monsoon Date[12] Yes No Short Film
2019 Aunty Sudha Aunty Radha[13] Yes No Documentary

References

  1. ^ Jha, Subhash K. (3 January 2007). "Why Tanuja Chandra is an angry young woman". Indo-Asian News Service, Press Trust of India. Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013.
  2. ^ "I'm a migrant, this is my city". Times of India. 17 February 2008. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  3. ^ "I've inherited creative genes from mom: Tanuja Chandra". Business Standard India. 18 February 2018 – via Business Standard.
  4. ^ "Tanuja Chandra's film is stuck". Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  5. ^ Dubey, Bharati. "Exclusive! Filmmaker Tanuja Chandra: Ashutosh Rana posed as a woman on the phone and convinced me to cast him as Lajja Shankar Pandey in 'Sangharsh'". The Times of India. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  6. ^ "Kartik Aaryan plays Muslim boy in Tanuja Chandra's film". The Indian Express. 18 February 2016. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
  7. ^ "Kartik Aaryan plays Muslim boy in Tanuja Chandra's film". indianexpress.com. 18 February 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  8. ^ "Qarib Qarib Singlle director Tanuja Chandra: Even when we are single, we are never free". 11 November 2017.
  9. ^ ""Women Have Always Had To Move Against The Tide!" Says Tanuja Chandra, Writer And Director". 24 May 2017.
  10. ^ "Tanuja Chandra: Today there is more openness towards films with fresh content". Hindustan Times. 5 December 2017.
  11. ^ "Qarib Qarib Singlle Movie Review: Irrfan Khan, Parvathy Star In Freewheeling Tale Of Lonely Hearts". NDTV.com.
  12. ^ "Konkona Sensharma on playing a transsexual in 'A Monsoon Date' and more..." dnaindia.com. 8 June 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  13. ^ Dipankar Sarkar (24 May 2020). "Tanuja Chandra's insightful documentary Aunty Sudha Aunty Radha". tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 6 December 2021.

External links

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