Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Sanjay Leela Bhansali ( संजय लीला भंसाली) is a highly acclaimed Indian film director. He is an alumnus of the Film and Television Institute of India. Bhansali has adopted the middle name "Leela" as a tribute to his mother, Leela Bhansali.

Bhansali began his career as an assistant to Vidhu Vinod Chopra and was involved in the making of Parinda, 1942 A Love Story and Kareeb. However, both had a fall out when Bhansali refused to direct Kareeb and instead made his directorial debut outside the Chopra camp with Khamoshi: The Musical, the commercially unsuccessful, but critically acclaimed narration of a daughter's struggle to communicate with her deaf mute parents. His next film was a triangular love story, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, which established his individualistic stamp for visual splendour and creating auras of celebration and festivity. The film was a great success and won numerous awards. His next film Devdas was Bhansali's ode to the well known novel of the same name. Upon its theatrical release in India, the film surfaced as the highest grossing movie. It also won major Bollywood awards and was India’s official entry to the Oscars. The musical received a significant reception at Cannes, where it premiered. Then came Black, which Time Magazine (Europe) selected as fifth of the 10 Best Movies of the Year 2005 from across the globe. Black broke a record at the 2006 Filmfare Awards, winning eleven awards. After having four successes, Bhansali experienced his first major flop in Saawariya, which was met with sharp criticisms and simultaneously poor collections at the box office.

His current project is entitled Chenab Gandhi directed by Vibhu Puri and written by Bhavani Iyer, who also wrote for Black. A departure from romance, this songless film revolves around three characters played by Amitabh Bachchan, Rajeev Khandelwal and Vidya Balan and centers around Indian freedom fighter, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, also known as Frontier Gandhi.

Awards

National Film Awards

2003: National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment - Devdas
2006: National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi - Black

Filmfare Awards
1997: Filmfare Critics Award for Best Movie - Khamoshi: The Musical
2000: Filmfare Best Director Award - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000: Filmfare Best Movie Award - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2003: Filmfare Best Director Award - Devdas
2003: Filmfare Best Movie Award - Devdas
2006: Filmfare Best Director Award - Black
2006: Filmfare Best Movie Award - Black
2006: Filmfare Critics Award for Best Movie - Black

Zee Cine Awards
2000: Zee Cine Award Best Director - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000: Zee Cine Award Best Film - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2003: Zee Cine Award Best Director - Devdas
2003: Zee Cine Award Best Film - Devdas
2006: Zee Cine Award Best Director - Black
2006: Zee Cine Award Best Film - Black

Star Screen Awards
2000: Star Screen Award Best Director - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000: Star Screen Award Best Film - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2003: Star Screen Award Best Director - Devdas
2003: Star Screen Award Best Film - Devdas
2006: Star Screen Award Best Director - Black
2006: Star Screen Award Best Film - Black

IIFA Awards
2000: IIFA Best Director Award - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000: IIFA Best Movie Award - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2003: IIFA Best Director Award - Devdas
2006: IIFA Best Director Award - Black
2006: IIFA Best Movie Award - Black

 Bollywood Movie Award
2003: Bollywood Movie Award - Best Director - Devdas
2003: Bollywood Movie Award - Best Film - Devdas
2006: Bollywood Movie Award - Best Director - Black
2006: Bollywood Movie Award - Best Film - Black

Stardust Awards
2006: Stardust Dream Director Award - Black

Filmography

Director
Khamoshi: The Musical (1996)
Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999)
Devdas (2002)
Black (2005)
Saawariya (2007)
Guzaarish (2010)

Producer
Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999)
Black (2005)
Saawariya (2007)
Guzaarish (2010)

Writer
1942: A Love Story (1994)
Khamoshi: The Musical (1996)
Guzaarish (2010)