Think ‘bold filmmakers’ and you think Anurag Kashyap, a man who speaks his soul through his movies. With films like Paanch and Black Friday, he has proved that he won’t compromise on his goals, not for the sake of the Censor Board, not for anyone else’s sake. His most recent release is No Smoking starring John Abraham and Ayesha Takia, but the director already has his hands full with his next project.

Spotboy, the production arm of UTV Motion Pictures will launch Kashyap’s newest baby Dev D. “Our objective is to develop story-driven and concept-driven cinema across every scale of production and work with new age and irreverent directors like Anurag Kashyap,” Spotboy Creative and Business Head Vikas Bahl says of this association.

Excerpts from an interview with Kashyap:

Tell us more about your new project with Spotboy.
Dev D is a modern take on ‘Devdas’, how ‘Devdas’ is applicable in today’s times where everything has become about instant gratification, including love. It will be a very hip and young film with real locations and real people. It stars Abhay Deol and Mahi Gill as ‘Devdas’ and ‘Paro’ respectively. I haven’t finalised an actor for the character of ‘Chandramukhi’ yet.

The concept for the movie came from Abhay Deol. He is one of the most exciting actors that one can work with today. He is not afraid to take risks, just like me. This is evident in his choice of roles in movies which are not run-of-the-mill.

How is No Smoking going to be different from the other films we have been exposed to of late?
I believe that a movie should reflect the milieu that we live in. It is nothing like any other film. It is the first of its kind in Indian cinema, very surreal and Kafkaesque. The protagonist is an ass****, very selfish and vain... the kind of man you don’t want to be associated with. I have borrowed all the bad qualities from my friends and infused this character with them (laughs).

Did you face any threats from the underworld or politicians about the stance that you should take in Black Friday? How do you muster the guts to fight obstacles like that if there are any?
There weren’t any threats. At the end of the day, it’s just about what you are and there’s nothing I fear.

Is there a dark side to Bollywood that goes undiscussed?
You have certain families and clans that don’t let outsiders into the industry. This results in the same sort of films being made over and over again. But that is changing now. Corporates coming in have helped create a market for different genres of films. The audience has also influenced this change.

Who do you make your films for? The rate of hard-hitting films made in the industry is less when compared to melodramas with eye candy, shot in   foreign locations...
I make my films for everyone. I try and make    engaging films. But I truly believe that a film finds its own audience. It is not for the maker to decide. The audience usually gives more importance to the eye candy variety of films, but that doesn’t mean that serious films are not appreciated.

Your philosophy when it comes to filmmaking.
I don’t make a film just because there is a market for it. I do whatever excites me. I hope there will be a day when there will be a market for a filmmaker and not a certain type of film.

Films that you swear by.
There are the typical cult movies like Taxiride and Fight Club that I really enjoy.

Where do you go from here?
I only go from one film to another. There’s Hanuman Returns, a sequel to Hanuman, that is coming up.