Sharanya Kumar
One of the most decorated Indian filmmakers, Anurag Kashyap has amassed a cult following for his dark explorations of the human psyche. He is a prolific writer, director and producer, whose magnum opus is the Gangs of Wasseypur series.
From beginning his career as a music composer, Vishal Bharadwaj has since established himself as one of the finest directors in the country. He is best known for his celebrated ‘Shakespeare trilogy’: Maqbool (Macbeth), Omkara (Othello) and Haider (Hamlet).
Nagraj Manjule draws from his own experiences to tell poignant stories about caste-discrimination in India. His Marathi-language films Fandry (2013) and Sairat (2016) were critically acclaimed, and have made an indelible mark on Indian cinema.
From Nayakan (1987) and Iruvar (1997) to Roja (1992) and Alaipayuthey (2000), Mani Ratnam has a host of both award-winning and commercially popular films under his belt. The director, who principally works in Tamil cinema, has also made films in other Indian languages.
Producer Guneet Monga has won Academy Awards for two of her documentary short films: Period. End of Sentence (2018) and The Elephant Whisperers (2022). She also founded Sikhya Entertainment, the production house behind a number of culturally significant films.