Bandar, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this year under the title Monkey in a Cage, is not an easy story to tell – or to watch – and director Anurag Kashyap acknowledges it readily. The story of the film’s protagonist, Samar Mehra, played superbly by Bobby Deol through stages of hope and humiliation, toxic masculinity and utter despair, is not crafted to elicit sympathy, especially not from female viewers; he plays “a loser” in the pithy words of the director. Speaking to The New Indian Express in Toronto, Kashyap admitted it could have well been his story.

“We come from a generation where we made mistakes and we learned from others' mistakes because somebody cared, called us out, and said you’re not supposed to do this. We were given space to grow, to redeem ourselves. Coming from such a patriarchal and misogynist part of North India, I would not have become the kind of person I am if I was not given the space to grow and to redeem myself,” says Anurag. Central to the film are its twin themes of the #MeToo movement and India’s painfully overloaded and often cruel criminal justice system; Samar is entwined in both. The second one is an easier lift, for there are few defences for a system that disproportionately punishes those lacking in means or influence. The film cites grim statistics at the end about the hundreds of thousands of undertrials packed into unimaginably inhuman conditions in jails, awaiting hearings and trials for years.

Samar is not wholly lacking in means or influence, but finds they are not enough to save him from a vengeful ex who has accused him of rape. This angle is a heavier lift for the film as it tries to navigate around the lives of a forgotten TV star, his current girlfriend, his obsessive ex bent on destroying him, and his loyal sister who grows increasingly impatient as the judicial process drags on.

The audience of this Anurag film can decide who to blame – the man who assumes after the briefest of acquaintances that his date would be up for anything he demands, or the woman who is so outraged by rejection that she cynically plots her revenge, or both. Anurag finds himself in the position of explaining his choice between highlighting the genuine exploitation of women and the misuse of laws meant to protect them. Noting that he had faced similar accusations himself, Anurag maintains that those experiences did not play a part in Bandar. “The problem exists. Where it really matters – forget the cities – in smaller towns, they don’t get reported. Women are going through the same kind of thing. I am only on the side of justice. Justice needs to be served. And even the fake cases are not because of the women. It’s because of the system, corrupt lawyers, and corrupt cops,” says the filmmaker.

For the first time, Kashyap also brought in a co-director, Sakshi Mehta, to provide a female perspective to the story. “The male gaze is very different from the female gaze. So, it was Sakshi who shot all the Gayatri portions. That kind of tenderness, or whatever it was, whether it was obsession, whatever it is, those tiny, tiny things were done by her. I could not have seen it that way. Three women in the film, dealing with their own dilemmas, dealing with their own problems, and I needed someone to discuss things with, and I had Aarti Bajaj, my editor, and Sakshi. Otherwise, it would have been shown from just one gaze.”

With Bandar, Kashyap has returned to his regular venue for premiering many of his films after a while. Many of his films were brought to TIFF by its current CEO, Cameron Bailey, who was programming Indian films at the film festival for several years. “Cameron saw the film, and he gave me some great feedback that also gave direction to the film. He really liked Bandar, and he really liked Bobby Deol’s performance. Built on the performances of the actors, the atmosphere, and what the film is trying to do, I have just made a conversation starter, which is what it is,” points out Anurag.

Anurag’s next release will be the crime drama Nishaanchi, on September 19th. The film features Aaishvary Thackeray, an actor with a weighty name, especially in Mumbai. Anurag said he saw Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s grandson only as an actor and had effusive praise for his acting debut. “He's got nothing to do with politics. And he’s a fantastic actor, probably one of the best actors that you will see of this generation,” signs off the filmmaker.