Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap and his partner Shubhra Shetty have opened up about their relationship, their 20-year age gap and the early days of their romance. In a recent conversation with Janice Sequeira, the couple spoke about Shubhra’s parents’ reaction to their relationship, how they managed working together while dating, their first date and how a journalist eventually outed their relationship.Shubhra revealed that her parents did not need much convincing when she began dating Anurag, who is around 20 years older than her. Instead, they met him themselves and formed their own opinion about the filmmaker.“My mom calls him a bakra, because she said he is stupid enough to be with you. She thinks he is like a henpecked husband. My parents did a very good job. I didn’t convince them. They met him,” Shubhra said.She recalled that Anurag was going through what she considered one of the best phases of his life when they met.“It was his pre-Bombay Velvet release and post-film shooting, he was in a very good phase. He was very fit, happy, reading books, and watching films. So, we bonded over all those things,” she said.Shubhra added that Anurag would often tell her that she might not have dated him if they had met earlier.“He used to say that if I had met him a few years ago, I wouldn’t have dated him, but I don’t think that’s true. I caught him in that one little golden window, when he was at his best,” she said.
Anurag and Shubhra on working together while dating
Shubhra previously worked as an assistant director at Phantom Films, the production company that was associated with Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vikas Bahl and Madhu Mantena. The couple also spoke about the complications of dating while working in the same office.“If you are dating someone within the office and you are the boss, everybody’s behaviour changes. Everything goes haywire,” Shubhra said.However, she said the people at the production house were supportive of their relationship.“The office was really sweet, they were supportive and nice. We were transparent and open. He never did come to the office. He was a boss at the office, but he wasn’t my boss,” she added.Anurag recalled that Shubhra was actually a fan of Vikramaditya Motwane when she joined Phantom Films.“She was a Vikramaditya Motwane fan,” he said.Shubhra admitted that she had never watched an Anurag Kashyap film when they first met.“When he came to the office for the first time, I had only heard that he was a crazy person, a dark filmmaker. He was going to Paris, in a jacket and fancy glasses. He looked so funny. He was the most unserious person ever,” she recalled.She said she had joined Phantom Films only two or three weeks earlier when Anurag approached her and asked, “What’s there for lunch?”“I remember thinking that he was eccentric,” she said with a laugh.
Anurag Kashyap admits he was self-conscious about their age gap
The filmmaker acknowledged that their 20-year age difference was something he was conscious of when they first became close.“I was very self-conscious of the age difference. It was very obvious that I had a crush on her. She was not aware,” Anurag said.He recalled deliberately avoiding the office when Shubhra was not around and eventually finding a way to ask her out.“I never used to go to the office before she wasn’t there. I wanted to invite her out, so I asked her to bring her friends,” he said.Shubhra then recalled how unconventional their first date was.“So, our first date was my friends and his 13-year-old daughter, who he was chasing around,” she said.
Anurag and Shubhra recall who said ‘I love you’ first
The couple also revealed who was the first to express their feelings. Shubhra said Anurag was the one who openly told her that he was in love with her.“This is where the generation difference kicks in. He jumped in and told me that he was in love with me,” she said.Shubhra recalled that Anurag told her he did not expect anything from her because she was still in her 20s and had much of life ahead of her.“I had a moment, but he said that he doesn’t expect anything from me because he has gone through life but I haven’t; I was still in my 20s, and had to see a lot. He was sure about being in love with me,” she said.
Shubhra Shetty says journalist outed their relationship
The couple had sparked dating rumours nearly a decade ago after Anurag shared pictures with Shubhra on social media. Shubhra revealed that they had wanted to keep their relationship away from the media glare, but a journalist eventually revealed their romance.“I am in my 30s. We were trying to keep this low, but we were open. We went out with people to events and parties. I just didn’t want to be in the media. One nosy aunty, a boy, came looking for a scoop and actually found it. The scoop decided they didn’t want to be the scoop, so they outed us,” she said.
Anurag recalls Shubhra visiting his village
Anurag also recalled taking Shubhra to his village in Uttar Pradesh and watching her experience life there.“She was clicking pictures of women of the village, sowing the seeds. She was visiting the village like a tourist. The place where food is actually made on a chulha. They were all so happy that he actually came to a family gathering,” he said.
Why Anurag Kashyap and Shubhra Shetty moved out of Mumbai
The couple also spoke about their decision to relocate from Mumbai. Shubhra left the city around 2018-19, while Anurag moved later.“It was her condition to come here. I resisted because I thought I was working and it will get sorted. But, eventually I realised that it wouldn’t. I came here last year, and since then, my depression is gone. I realised that I should have done this a long time back,” Anurag said.
Anurag Kashyap’s previous marriages
Before his relationship with Shubhra Shetty, Anurag Kashyap was married to editor Aarti Bajaj. They divorced in 2009 and have a daughter, Aaliyah Kashyap.He later married actor Kalki Koechlin in 2011. The couple separated after four years of marriage and divorced in 2015.