Apr 19, 2026 1:25pm IST
20 Years of ‘Gangster’: Anurag Basu Reveals He Was Lucky To Find Kangana Ranaut: ‘There Was Nobody Like Her Around That Time’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Over the years, this romantic crime thriller has achieved the status of a cult classic among movie aficionados. Its screenplay, direction, evergreen music and impeccable performance by its cast, especially from the then debutante Kangana Ranaut, have ensured that this film stays long in public memory.
With its 20-year milestone around the corner, Variety India speaks to the film’s director, Anurag Basu, on the making, casting and other aspects of this iconic film.
What was the spark that led you to the story of “Gangster?”
So, we were sitting in Vishesh Film with Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt Sahab. Bhatt Sahab just gave a one-line idea of a story. This stuck with me. I didn't tell him immediately that this was a brilliant idea, or that I wanted to make a film on this. This one-line idea was of a gangster being betrayed by his girlfriend, the lover. So, that was it. So, the first spark actually came from him. Then, I developed it into a screenplay.
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I didn't tell him, but Mahesh Bhatt did know that I was writing this script. I went back and narrated this script to them. That's how it all started.
How much time did it take?
I was working on ‘Metro’ at that time. And I got stuck in the screenplay of ‘Metro’ in the middle. So, I thought maybe it was a good time to work on some other film and then come back to the ‘Metro’ screenplay. So, I started writing it to get away from the film I was actually supposed to be writing for. I thought maybe I'll work on something else, a different genre. Then it will be easier for me to go back and write ‘Metro.’ But eventually, in just two weeks, the whole screenplay was ready. Less than two weeks. It flowed very easily. And it is always a sign of a good script and good story when it flows easily and you write it effortlessly.
How did you zero in on Kangana Ranaut as Simran?
I had an image of the girl in my mind, which was very similar to Kangana, and I was lucky enough to find her. I was struggling because I was meeting many girls and consulting with a lot of actresses. But there was none like Kangana around that time. So, I had a very clear image of a girl like this, a pahadan (from the mountains). So, when I first met her, I didn't tell her immediately that she had been cast. Because directors are always greedy. So, I auditioned her and said, ‘You wait for five-six days. I'll get back to you.’ I was still looking for a new girl for another five to six days. I couldn't find one better than Kangana. I confirmed her for the film.
Tell us about your collaboration with music director Pritam.
Pritam and I have been working together since our television days. I tried to rope in Pritam for ‘Murder’ too. But then, Pritam was not this big music director, and I was beginning my journey in films with Vishesh Films. So, they had their own music directors. But, with ‘Gangster,’ I could convince Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt to have Pritam on board. Pritam had been my close friend since I had moved to Bombay. I knew our collaboration would be good, and Pritam gave his best for this film.
Your favorite tracks from the film?
All the songs, actually. ‘Ya Ali’ was included at the last minute. Pritam just made this song. I said, ‘I will include this song in the film.’ It was before the last schedule. Everything was actually fate. Zubin (Zubin Garg) was in Bombay on a visit. So, ‘Ya Ali’ toh aise bangaya last moment pe aur woh actually film ke soundtrack mein tha bhi nahi (‘Ya Ali’ was a last-minute song and was not even part of the soundtrack). ‘Bheegi’ is my favorite song from the film.
What were the biggest challenges during the shoot, particularly in international locations?
So, when I just conceived the film, I wanted to go on the floor very quickly. And everybody was stopping me from going on the floor, as I was undergoing chemotherapy at the time. They wanted me to start the shoot after I had recovered. But the only way I could deal with the chemo and everything happening to me was by going on the floor. I was desperate to go on the floor. Because they all cared about me and loved me, they said, ‘Why don't you start shooting in Bombay. Don't go outdoors, shoot here. The treatment is happening here; you should not go abroad.’ But I wanted to really catch the bull by the horns and do the toughest schedule first. And then do the rest of the schedule in Bombay. So, I told Mukesh Bhatt that I want to go to South Korea. No films were shot in South Korea before. There was no reference, there was no line producer or anything. So, Mukesh Bhatt told me, ‘Son, go to Honolulu. Budget is 3.5 crore. Will you be able to manage with 3.5 crore to go to South Korea?’ So, wherever you have to go, you have to manage with this budget. I went to South Korea. It is a first-world country, and very costly.
My first recce was only doing a production job. Which hotel to stay in? Where to get food from? Which locations are free? I didn’t do a creative job. I wanted to shoot there during the fall, knowing how beautiful South Korea is in that season. Unfortunately, we could only shoot one day in the fall. One shot of Kangana sitting on a bench, along with a few other shots. After that, we had heavy rains. We missed the fall.
But had a great unit. We went there with a very small unit because we couldn't afford many people. We used to cook our own lunch. Kangana would cut onions and I would cook dal. And everybody would eat and go for the shoot.
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