Anurag Kashyap has done it. A fast learner, he chose to disassociate himself from the disappointment of NO SMOKING and instead diverted his energy in a positive manner towards DEV D. The result is some terrific reviews and positive word of mouth that his Abhay Deol starrer is gaining.

''I am aware of the fact that I have an image of a film maker who makes very dark movies; the kind that scares the sh!! out of everybody'', laughs Anurag as he can pretty much afford to do that now, considering the acclaim that his fifth film as a director is getting.

He started off with a gritty PAANCH (which is yet to be released), followed it up with BLACK FRIDAY (which received quite some acclaim and reasonable box office success in spite of a delayed release), suffered the worst phase of his career with NO SMOKING (that was ripped apart by most and crashed over the opening weekend itself), witnessed an inconsequential animation flick HANUMAN RETURNS (about which hardly anyone is aware of) and eventually settled down with an 'emotionally atyachaari' love story DEV D.

Narrate this to Anurag and he continues with a smile, ''I always wanted to make a very real love story and not one of those quintessential mushy and dancing around the trees tale. Then I met Abhay and as we are aware by now, none of us looked back after that. I wanted to take a story that was borrowed from newspaper headlines and also found a parallel with Devdas.''

Hence the avtar DEV D? ''True, the film had to be recognizable with people in the current times. It had to be real and vibrant, something that audience has connected to as well. The result is positive box office numbers that are coming in. I am told that the film is en route to be a good success. Of course, I am relieved.''

Anurag Kashyap: I have an image of a filmmaker who makes very dark movies