Acclaimed Bollywood filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar turns 51 today and relishing his commendable work through his realistic films we wish the National Award Winning director a very Happy Birthday! His success reflects upon his work in cinema and his movies that focus on reality. The ace filmmaker's journey began with assisting the veteran director Ram Gopal Varma. Did you know he also had a cameo role to play in Aamir Khan, Jackie Shroff and Urmila Matondkar's 1995 film Rangeela? He made his directorial debut with 1999 film Trishakti that didn't include any known actors in the cast. Thereafter, he helmed his 2001 Tabu and Atul Kulkarni film Chandni Bar, which earned him critical acclaim and commercial success. And the rest is history. Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar Shares a Pic With Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath on His 47th Birthday

When you think of a Madhur Bhandarkar film, "Realistic" is the first adjective that strikes our mind. Bhandarkar's films present the truth of society, touch upon issues that no one ever dared to and still make it an engaging for the viewers. In the year 2016, Bhandarkar was honoured with the fourth-highest civilian award, Padma Shri by the government of India for his work in the field of Indian Cinema. On Madhur Bhandarkar's 51st Birthday, let's take a look at his five best films that give us a reality check. Madhur Bhandarkar to Make a Movie on Star-Wives Gauri Khan, Twinkle Khanna and Mira Rajput?

Traffic Signal

Starring  Kunal Khemu, Neetu Chandra, Ranvir Shorey and Konkona Sen Sharma, Traffic Signal (2007) earned Madhur Bhandarkar a National Film Award but this time for the Best Director category.

Traffic Signal:

Kunal Khemu and Upendra Limaye in Traffic Signal (Photo Credits: Youtube Still)

The film portrays the dark side of Mumbai slums with realistic characters, making it an enjoyable fare. It showcases the shocking nexus of the beggars from the traffic signal with sinister politicians and the underworld. The flawless direction of Traffic Signal makes it an enticing watch, giving us a sneak peek of Mumbai's slum nexus which operates even today.

Corporate

Madhur Bhandarkar's portrayal of the corporate world couldn't get more realistic than this 2006 movie Corporate.  Bhandarkar lays bare the ultimate agenda of the corporate houses, making a profit at all costs.

Corporate:

Bipasha Basu in Corporate (Photo Credits: Youtube Still)

The film shows how corporates sacrifice ethics to achieve it. Corporate shows the unethical side of the business with corporate wars, business tactics, strategies, sleazy deals, political paybacks, corrupt business values and the sabotage soft-drink scandal. The film hits so close to home that IIM Ahmedabad students were presented with this film as a case study. Moreover, Bipasha Basu was lauded for her performance in the film and it earned her several nominations and awards for essaying a cunning smart businesswoman role.

Page 3

Madhur Bhandarkar's 2005 film Page 3 stars Konkona Sensharma film as a Page 3 journalist, who hunts for celebrity news and gossip. The film is all about tabloid journalism, gossip and celebrities. It exposes the societal filth of the film industry.

Page 3:

Konkona Sen Sharma and Tara Sharma in Page 3 (Photo Credits: Youtube Still)

Showcasing a dark side that can't be denied even today. Not only casting couch woes, but this brave film also touched upon issues like terrorism and child abuse. Apart from Konkona, the film also stars Boman Irani, Tara Sharma and Atul Kulkarni. It has bagged the National Film Award for Best Feature Film category

Fashion

Earlier, Page 3 showed the darker side of the film industry, while Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut's 2008 film Fashion was all about exploring the dark world of fashion industry going beyond the catwalk, makeup and glamorous dresses.

Fashion:

Kangana Ranaut in Fashion (Photo Credits: Youtube Still)

Fashion is Bhandarkar's finest film made on the fashion industry in Bollywood and more importantly, it is relevant even today. His films are known for revealing the stark truths of various facets of Indian society and Fashion does it once again. A true story of a small-town girl with big aspirations, who get involved in immoral activities in order to struggle and thrive in the world of Fashion, which is the focus of the film.

Chandni Bar

It is a known fact that Tabu's 2001 film Chandni Bar remains Madhur Bhandarkar's finest film till date. Chandni Bar tells the tale of a young innocent girl from a small town, who goes to sin city Mumbai where she works as a bar dancer to make ends meet.

Chandni Bar:

Tabu and Ananya Khare in Chandni Bar (Photo Credits: Youtube Still)

There are several scenes that showcased Tabu's stellar performance and it is unfortunate that she missed out on the National Award for the Best Actress. The film will blow your mind through its unabashed realism and Tabu's laudable performance. A must watch!

Madhur Bhandarkar's last outing was Kirti Kulhari's 2017 Indu Sarkar, which was based on Indira Gandhi's 1975-77 Emergency tenure. As we wish the acclaimed filmmaker a happy birthday once again, we do want him back in the director's seat with the work he is best at --reflectin reality through his movies. A super-hit comeback would be the real icing on the cake. Cheers!

 

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 26, 2019 02:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).