Nikhil Nagesh Bhat

Nikhil Nagesh Bhat, a Hindi-language director-writer known for his wide range of genres from rom-coms to propulsive, hyper-violent dramas, launched his feature filmmaking career (after working as an associate director on Shoonya (2006) and as a creative consultant on Anurag Kashyap’s feature, Black Friday) with the comedy, Saluun (2009), co-starring Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Gayatri Choudhary, and Chittaranjan Giri, and which premiered at the Cairo film festival. Bhat was the director-writer of the crime comedy-drama, Long Live Brij Mohan (2017), starring Arjun Mathur and released by Netflix.

Bhat co-directed and co-wrote the caste-themed Hurdang (2022), starring Sunny Kaushal, Nushrratt Bharuccha, and Vijay Varma, and grossing over $2 million. Bhat gained international acclaim and attention for his breakthrough movie as director/co-writer, Kill (2023), with Lakshya, Raghav Juyal, and Tanya Maniktala, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival before it was released wide by Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions as the first Hindi-language movie to open on over 1000 screens in North America.

Nikhil Nagesh Bhat soon returned as writer-director of another action movie, Apurva (2023), produced by Star Studios and co-starring Tara Sutaria, Rajpal Naurang Yadav, and Abhishek Banerjee.