Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra | |
|---|---|
 Mehrac. 2018 | |
| Born | (1963-07-07)7 July 1963 (age 62) Delhi, India |
| Alma mater | Shri Ram College of Commerce Delhi University |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, producer, screenwriter |
| Years active | 1986–present |
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra (born 7 July 1963) is an Indian film director, occasional actor and screenwriter. He is best known for writing and directing the dramaRang De Basanti (2006) and the biographical sports filmBhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013), winning twoFilmfare Awards for Best Director. He also wrote and directed the supernatural action thrillerAks (2001) and the dramaDelhi-6 (2009).
He was born on 7 July 1963 inDelhi.[1] His father worked forThe Claridges, Delhi.[2] He was a part of the selection camp as a swimmer in the1982 Asian Games held at New Delhi but was not selected in the final round.[3][4] He studied atAir Force Bal Bharati School in Delhi.
In 1992, Mehra married film editor, P. S. Bharathi.[5] The couple have a daughter, Bhairavi, and a son named Vedant.[2]
Mehra criticised the vote-bank politics behind the introduction of the Mandal Commission by VP Singh, and said it inspired him to pen the script ofRang De Basanti.[2]
Mehra has criticised India's education system as being too marks-driven, without any emphasis on actual achievement. Ridiculing the system, he said: "We'd started work on "96.7", till I realised it had become redundant, and I should work on a subject called 100%. It was about the education system. Perhaps I'll make it once I understand the whole system... perhaps my views are very lopsided right now. But the seeds have been sown,". He further added: "Imagine if Shakespeare goes to DU (Delhi University) and he's told, 'We can't take you based on stories you've written as your marksheet isn't that cool.' Or if a Leonardo, or Rabindranath Tagore goes there, and writes something called "Gitanjali" and they tell him, 'Mr Tagore, it's nice to write things such as 'Where the head is held high', but where is your marksheet?"[6]
Mehra started off by selling vacuum cleaners forEureka Forbes.[2] In 1986, he established Flicks Motion Picture Company Private Limited, starting his career as an advertisement film maker. He directed scores oftelevision commercials forIndian and international clients, includingCoke,Pepsi,Toyota,American Express andBPL. He has also directed music videos such asAby Baby starringAmitabh Bachchan.
Mehra then gradually shifted from being an ad filmmaker to a feature filmmaker.[2] In 2001, he made his directorial debut with thesupernaturalaction thrillerAks starringAmitabh Bachchan,Raveena Tandon andManoj Bajpayee in lead roles. Produced by Mehra's own company, the film received critical acclaim upon release, but emerged as a commercial failure at the box-office.[7]
His next venture was the dramaRang De Basanti (2006) starring an ensemble cast ofAamir Khan,Siddharth,R. Madhavan,Sharman Joshi,Atul Kulkarni,Soha Ali Khan,Kunal Kapoor andBritish actressAlice Patten. The film followed the story of a British film student traveling to India to document the story of five freedom fighters of theIndian revolutionary movement. She befriends and casts five young men in the film, which inspires them to fight against the corruption of their own government. It received positive reviews from critics upon release, with praise for its credibility, direction, screenplay, soundtrack and the performances of the ensemble cast. The film emerged as a commercial success at the box-office, grossing₹97 crore (US$11 million) worldwide, ranking as theseventh highest-grossing Hindi film of the year.Rang De Basanti won Mehra his firstFilmfare Award for Best Film andBest Director, in addition to theNational Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. The film also earned him a nomination for theBAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language. It was also officially chosen asIndia's official entry for theAcademy Award for Best International Feature Film, but failed to receive a nomination.[8]
Mehra's third venture was the dramaDelhi-6 (2009) starring an ensemble cast ofAbhishek Bachchan,Sonam Kapoor,Aditi Rao Hydari,Rishi Kapoor,Supriya Pathak,Atul Kulkarni,Divya Dutta,Om Puri andWaheeda Rehman in lead roles. The film tells the story of anNRI who arrives in India with his ailing grandmother and begins discovering his roots before getting embroiled in a religious dispute involving a mysteriousmonkey-like attacker. Despite pre-release hype, it received mixed reviews from critics upon release, with praise for its soundtrack and performances of the cast, but criticism for its story, screenplay and pacing. The film emerged as a commercial failure at the box-office;[9] however, it won Mehra theNargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration.
Mehra then produced Mrighdeep Lamba's debut directorial venture, the comedyTeen Thay Bhai (2011).[10] The film, which told the story of three brothers who keep fighting amongst themselves, emerged as a critical and commercial disaster at the box-office.[11]
Mehra's next directorial venture was the biographical sports dramaBhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013) starringFarhan Akhtar asMilkha Singh, the legendary Indian sprinter. Produced by a consortium of several producers, the film opened to positive reviews from critics upon release, and emerged as a major commercial success at the box-office, grossing₹201 crore (US$24 million), ranking as theeighth highest-grossing Hindi film of the year, and Mehra's highest grosser to date.[12]Bhaag Milkha Bhaag won Mehra his second Filmfare Award for Best Film and Best Director, in addition to his second National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment.
Mehra's latest film isMirzya (2016), a contemporary retelling of the tragic love story ofMirza & Sahiba. Set in Rajasthan, the film marked the debut of two newcomers,[13] namelyHarshvardhan Kapoor (son of actorAnil Kapoor) as Mirzya, andSaiyami Kher, granddaughter of veteran actressUsha Kiran, as Sahiba.Gulzar emerged from a long hiatus to write the screenplay of the film,[14] andShankar–Ehsaan–Loy were entrusted with the music direction.[15] Released on 7 October 2016,Mirzya proved to be an unmitigated disaster at the box office. Made on a budget of Rs. 35 crore (350 million), its total collections over a two-week period amounted to less than Rs. 10 crore (100 million). The film, which had been in the planning since at least 2009,[16] and was made over a three-year period, ran for only one week in most theatres, losing nearly all its screens at the end of that period.
Mere Pyare Prime Minister (2019) was written by himself and Manoj Mairta. Though it received generally positive reviews, it flopped at the box-office.
In 2025, Mehra served as chairperson of the international jury at the56th International Film Festival of India held from 20 November to 28 November.[17]
| Year | Film | Director | Producer | Writer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Aks | Yes | Yes | |
| 2006 | Rang De Basanti | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2009 | Delhi-6 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2011 | Teen They Bhai | Yes | ||
| 2013 | Bhaag Milkha Bhaag | Yes | Yes | |
| 2016 | Mirzya | Yes | Yes | |
| 2018 | Fanney Khan | Yes | ||
| 2019 | Mere Pyare Prime Minister | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2021 | Toofaan | Yes | Yes |
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Bhaag Milkha Bhaag | Pilot |
| 2017 | Dear Maya | Ved |
| 2021 | Toofaan | IBF secretary Anup Verma |
| Year | Title | Performer | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | "Betiyaan" (Save the Girl Child) | Shankar Mahadevan,Sunidhi Chauhan,Sonu Nigam | [18] |
