1st July 2004. Exactly twenty years ago, I moved to Mumbai with the dream of becoming a writer. Zero connections, zero formal training, very little knowledge of good world cinema (the best films I had seen till then were The Shawshank Redemption, Fight Club, Katha, and Appu Raja – all of them i still love but i didn’t know ki duniya mein iss-se better films bhi hoti hain), not much knowledge of even the basic craft of writing, and very little savings (though of course my privilege was a huge safety net). I often think that if I had known how tough this city – and this industry- are, I’d have probably never moved. The constant exploitation, almost as a compulsion even when they could get work done without exploiting or manipulating, and lack of respect for writers came as a shock to me but at the same time, kindness and support of many people (starting with my first writing partner and friend in the city @randomiya – a treasure of a person), the team and crew of my THE GREAT INDIAN COMEDY SHOW (@shashantshah, @pathakvinay, @amitvmasurkar, @lordmenon, and show’s creative head Sailesh Dave plus many others) kept me going. Over time, many more artistic voices I respected and loved allowed me to collab and play (starting with the man who taught me to be brave – @anuragkashyap10 – and then a long list of names who inspired me to be honest and authentic – @neeraj.ghaywan, @snekhanwalkar, @anubhuti_k, @motwayne, @sylvesterfonseca, @vasanbala, @sharatkatariya, @rkrkay, @therichachadha, @iamhumaq, @swapsagram, @anvita_dee, @itsamittrivedi, @avinasharundhaware, @jaideepahlawat and many more.). And then i recently got to make and release my first feature film ALL INDIA RANK thanks to fantastic producers in @matchboxshots with @pratikmr and @vishal_bajaj_1603 as EPs and a team full of so many talented first timers. Ye Ek Rupaye ka note uss din mere wallet meiN tha jab maiN barsaat meiN bheegte huye Mumbai aaya tha. Isko sukhaane ke liye rakha tha – phir laga just as a romantic gesture, isko hamesha sambhaal ke rakhoonga. Mere paas aur paise thay – but ye note symbol bann gaya uss din ka. Tab sukhaaya tha toh kadak ho gaya tha – aaj tak kadak hai. Iss shehar ki tarah!
Discover the magic of Ektara Trust’s book collections,📚✨including their unique book cycle and children’s stories. Explore captivating tales by various authors. Buy these books collection at rekhtabooks.com or click the link in the bio. Visual Credit: @chalchitratalks #ektaratrust #varungrover #childrens #books #bookcycle #ShortStories #read #hindi #literature
Presenting a short film I really loved. Funny, surprising, and with great performances. Dekho aur share karo! ‘ICU – Praying for a miracle’ Produced by: Mukesh Manjunath & Nikhil Chalam Directed and Edited by: Nikhil Chalam Written by: Mukesh Manjunath Cast: Aahana Kumra Rytasha Rathore Sheeba Chaddha Denzil Smith
One of my fav artists/poets @srushtinahitohkaun has a new song out and it’s about this moment in history of our strife-ridden planet. We chatted a bit about our roles – and somehow lost all the data to a freak event. Uss lambi baatcheet mein se bas ye hi bacha hai. Check out her new song WE DON’T CARE on YouTube.
A small tribute to Surjit Patar saab. Translated one of his most loved poems in Hindi. “Kavi Saahib”
The tour continues. More shows coming in other Indian cities too. Tickets in bio. New poster designed by: @bob_almost and @almost_bobby
Recently saw this fantastic funny short film directed by @chillamgiri and written by @mukeshmanjunath. Since releasing a short film on OTT is a crazy difficult process, I decided to present and release it through my social media reach (my YouTube and instagram pages.). Featuring the terrific @sheeba.chadha, @aahanakumra, and @rytash, the film will release this Saturday (8th June) online. Dekh lena sab!
Writer Varun Grover explains why the team had to kill some of our favorite characters in ‘Sacred Games.’ In TS Studios’ The Best Parts podcast, journalist Genesia Alves dissects our favorite films, with a little help from the people who brought them to life. Head to the link in bio to listen to the full episode. Host: @genesia.a.alves Producer and Editor: @adipatapat Sound Design and Mixing: @not_vibhav Marketing Collateral Design:@not_vibhav Art Director: @besharam_khala Creative Director: @shrishti_mu Executive Producer: Karla Bookman #TheBestPartsTS
Short film banaana niswaarth seva karne jaisa hai. Aapko pata hai ye kahin release nahin hogi lekin aap saaf dil se bas karm karte rahte ho. This lovely, funny short film gave me so much joy that I decided to support the makers by releasing it through my social media channels. Dropping tomorrow at my insta as well as YouTube channels. Tab tak chhota sa clip/trailer dekho. Directed by @chillamgiri, written by @mukeshmanjunath, and featuring @sheeba.chadha, @aahanakumra, and @rytash.
Writer Varun Grover elaborates on the outsider’s perspective on Bombay, and what makes Sacred Games’ Kukoo the perfect personification of the city. In TS Studios’ The Best Parts podcast, journalist Genesia Alves dissects our favorite films, with a little help from the people who brought them to life. Head to the link in bio to listen to the full episode. Host: @genesia.a.alves Producer and Editor: @adipatapat Sound Design and Mixing: @not_vibhav Marketing Collateral Design:@not_vibhav Art Director: @besharam_khala Creative Director: @shrishti_mu Executive Producer: Karla Bookman #TheBestPartsTS
Laughing Out Loud and Making Sense of How Nothing Makes Sense with THE Varun Grover in Amsterdam! Sharing snippets from his performance at the Comedy Café, Boom Chicago and CREA Organised by the @serioustimepassfilms magicians! Follow them to keep with with event updates 🙂 #comedy #fun #amsterdam #standup #standupcomedy
Laughing Out Loud and Making Sense of How Nothing Makes Sense with THE Varun Grover in Amsterdam! Sharing snippets from his performance at the Comedy Café, Boom Chicago and CREA Organised by the @serioustimepassfilms magicians! Follow them to keep with with event updates 🙂 #comedy #fun #amsterdam #standup #standupcomedy
This terrific music video – animated by @bob_almost and @almost_bobby and produced by @imlstories with lyrics by @manish.polymathiac is out now on YouTube. Dekho jaake! #kafkaesque
Varun Grover performing live at The Big Lineup 2024! 📍JLN Stadium, New Delhi Tickets 🎟️ available on BookMyShow!
And the first episode of #TheStreamingShow podcast season 2, brought to you by @mubiindia, is here 🙂 in which I speak to @sumukhisuresh and @vidushak about the good, bad and ugly of navigating writers rooms, the do’s and dont’s of running a writers’ room, bringing together the right group of personalities, what the job of a head writer actually is, how young writers can deal with asshole boses and toxic power structures, the insanity of writers being banned on sets and a whole lot more. You can watch the episode on my YouTube channel, or listen to it on Spotify as well as on all major podcast platforms.
Excited to present this fantastic music video made by a team of brilliant artists. Animated by Bob and Bobby and with some terrific lyrics by Manish Gupta, this is deeply political and abstract fun. Watch the video on @imlstories page.
मेरी दुनिया के तमाम बच्चे। अदनान कफ़ील दरवेश की अद्भुत कविता। @adnankafeeldarwesh
Kafkaesque Ye Life drops tomorrow at IML stories Youtube channel! https://www.youtube.com/@IMLStories #animatedmusicvideo #bobbobbyartwork #illustration #2danimation #musicvideo #icemedialabstories #imlstories
Get ready for “Nothing Makes Sense”, a standup comedy special that will leave you in stitches! Catch Varun Grover live in: Mumbai on June 7th Bengaluru on June 30th Delhi on July 20th Hyderabad on July 21st Don’t miss out on the hilarious ride! Secure your tickets now! 🎟️ on @bookmyshowin #NothingMakesSense #VarunGrover #StandupComedy #Mumbai #Bangalore #Delhi #Hyderabad
Exciting news! ‘All India Rank,’ produced by @matchboxshots , is making waves on Netflix, ranking #4 in India and #10 globally! 🎬 Have you watched this gripping film yet? #AllIndiaRank #MustWatch #Matchboxshots
Exciting news! ‘All India Rank,’ produced by @matchboxshots , is making waves on Netflix, ranking #4 in India and #10 globally! 🎬 Have you watched this gripping film yet? #AllIndiaRank #MustWatch #Matchboxshots
