Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri is an Indian well-known film director, screenwriter, writer, and activist. Vivek Agnihotri, the renowned director of the Bollywood film industry, is not interested in any identity today. Since 2019, he is also a member of the Central Board of Film Certification of India and the Cultural Representative of Indian Cinema in the Indian Council for Cultural Relations. He won the “National Film Award” for Best Screenplay in 2009 for the film – The Tashkent Files.
Agnihotri started his career with advertising agencies and moved into producing and directing television serials. He made his Bollywood debut with the crime thriller film Chocolate (2005) and has directed several films since then. The films he has produced have also been liked by the people. His films range from thrillers to sports and romantic drama etc.
He has also written a book called Urban Naxal in the year 2018, which is included in the category of bestseller book. These days, the film The Kashmir Files based on Kashmiri Pandits is in the news all over the country. Along with the film, Vivek Agnihotri, who directed it, is also in a lot of discussions these days. The film depicts the story of the genocide in Kashmir in the 90s. Seeing the film, many big personalities from the Prime Minister of the country have praised Vivek Agnihotri.
Early Life
Vivek Agnihotri was born in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. He was born in Jawahar Colony. Played and grew up in the soil of Gwalior. But originally his family is from Uttar Pradesh. He did his Bachelor of Science and Master of Planning (Economics) from the School of Social Science, Bhopal University. After this, he completed his further studies at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi. Here he obtained his diploma in advertising. Apart from this, Vivek Agnihotri has also completed his Certificate of Special Studies from Harvard Extension School. After completing his studies, he came to Mumbai and started working on making ad films.
Biography & Wiki
| Age, Biography & Wiki |
| Full Name | Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri |
| Nickname | Vivek |
| Profession | Director, Screenwriter, Writer, Activist |
| Known For | Being the director of the 2022 movie ‘The Kashmiri Files’ |
| Debut | Film-Chocolate, In the year 2005 |
| Language Known | Hindi & English |
| Date Of Birth | 21 December 1973 (Friday) |
| Age (as of 2022) | 48 Years |
| Birthplace | Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India |
| Hometown | Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Star Sign/ Zodiac Sign | Sagittarius |
| Hobbies | Reading Books, Travelling |
| Food Habit | Non-Vegetarian |
| Height, Weight & Physical Overview |
| Height in Centimeters | 170 cm |
| in Meters | 1.70 m |
| in Feet & Inches | 5′ 7″ |
| Weight in Kilograms | 75 kg |
| Weight in Pounds | 165 lbs |
| Body Measurement (approx.) | Chest-40
Waist-31 Biceps-12 |
| Eye Colour | Black |
| Hair Colour | Salt & Paper |
| Family & Relatives |
| Father | Dr. Prabhu Dayal Agnihotri |
| Mother | Sharda Agnihotri |
| Sister | Not Known |
| Brother | Not Known |
| Girlfriends, Affairs, Wife, and Marital Status |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Affairs/Girlfriends | Not Known |
| Wife/Spouse | Pallavi Joshi (Actress)
|
| Children/Kids | Son-Manan, Daughter-Malika |
| Education Qualification, School and College |
| School | Not Known |
| College/University | School of Social Science, Bhopal University
Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi Harvard University |
| Educational Qualification | Graduation in science and post-graduation in Planning (Economics) from School of Social Science, Bhopal University
Advertising at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi Organisation & Management Course (CSS) at Harvard University |
| Money Factor |
| Salary/Earning (approx.) | Not Known |
| Net Worth (approx.) | INR 10 Crores |
Physical Attributes
Vivek Agnihotri has a healthy physique and he is 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm) tall. Describing more about body fitness his weight is around 75 Kg (165 lbs). Vivek Agnihotri always keeps himself fit and he is very healthy Conscious. His chest measurement is 40 Inches, Waist is approx. 31 Inches & biceps measurement is 12 Inches. He has a nice hairstyle and got Salt & Paper hair and Black Eyes.
Family Background and Relationship
Vivek Agnihotri was born on 21 December 1973 in a Brahmin family in Gwalior city of Madhya Pradesh. Vivek’s father Dr. Prabhuram Agnihotri was a Professor at Maharani Laxmibai College and Head of the Department of Sanskrit. Director Vivek Agnihotri married TV artist and Indian actress Pallavi Joshi in the year 1990. Vivek and Pallavi have two children, a son, and a daughter. His daughter’s name is Malika and his son’s name is Manan.
Advertising Career
Vivek Agnihotri started his career with the world’s renowned agencies like Advertising Agencies Ogilvy and McCann. He led major commercials for Maggi, Nestle, P&G, Gillette, Coca-Cola. Director Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri has been a part of the launch team of Gillette and Coke. Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri started ‘Vivek Agnihotri Creates’ and also produced and directed major campaigns for Vicks, Godrej, P&G, Dainik Bhaskar, Government of India, Blind Association of India.
Television Career
In 1994, Vivek Agnihotri produced and directed several television serials. His work was highly appreciated. He has written, directed, and produced over 300 hours of Prime TV shows like Yeh Kahan Aa Gaye Hum, Rishtey, Saturday Suspense, X-Zone, Announcement, and Sambhav and has won several awards and critical acclaim.
Filmy Career
Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri made his Bollywood debut with the movie named “Chocolate” (2005). The film was a remake of the 1995 Hollywood crime thriller movie ‘The Usual Suspects’. But this film proved to be a flop. In 2007, he directed the film “Dhan Dhana Dhan – Gol”. It received poor reviews from critics and did “average” business at the box office. He then directed Hate Story in 2012, which received mixed reviews and performed poorly at the box office. Agnihotri’s 2014 erotic thriller Zid obtained poor reviews but did average business at the box office.
Then in 2016, Vivek portrayed his wife Pallavi in “Buddha in a Traffic Jam” which premiered at the Mumbai International Film Festival. Once again his film received negative reviews from critics and performed below average at the box office. Junooniyat (2016) received poor reviews from critics and the film performed similarly. Tashkent Files, which was released in 2019, also received highly negative reviews from critics but became a sleeper hit at the box office. Released on March 11, 2022, The Kashmir Files proved to be his biggest hit film to date and this film is being praised everywhere. Apart from being a director, Vivek is also a writer. A book written by Vivek is ‘Urban Naxal’ which is also a best seller book. Not only this, Vivek Agnihotri and Pallavi Ghosh also run an NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) named I am Buddha.
The Kashmir Files
Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri has come into the limelight by making the movie named “The Kashmir Files”. This film is made on the injustice and genocide of Kashmiri Hindus in 1990. The pain of Kashmiri pandits has been shown in this movie. Vivek has traveled around the world receiving testimonials from the victims of this massacre. During his interview, he told that it took him only one month to make this film but it took 4 years for research. He also said that a fatwa was also issued against him during the film.
The film was scheduled to release in August 2021, but due to the lockdown, it was postponed till the cinema hall reopened. The movie was released in cinemas on 11 March 2022 (Friday).
The Kashmir Files stars Anupam Kher, Puneet Issar, and Mithun Chakraborty. Apart from this, the film also has actors like Pallavi Joshi, Darshan Kumar, Chinmay Mandlekar, Bhasha Sumbli. Anupam Kher’s act in The Kashmir Files is being appreciated by all.
Awards and Achievements
- In 2014, Vivek Agnihotri won the Best Writer Award and also won the award at the Jakarta International Film Festival for the film Buddha in a Traffic Jam.
- Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri’s public service advertisement film on AIDS won him the most prestigious A&M Gold Award and the ED Club Gold Award for his contribution to the creative arts and society.
- Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri made an award-winning documentary film on ‘Social Justice in India’.
- Agnihotri started his advertising agency – Art Beat in Delhi and was selected as one of the ’10 Fastest Growing Agencies’ by Business Today.
- In 2017, Agnihotri was selected as the convenor by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in the Preview Committee of the 48th International Film Festival of India. In the same year, he was also selected as a member of the Central Board of Film Certification of India.
- On 15 September 2020, Agnihotri was appointed as the Cultural Representative in the Indian Council for Cultural Relations. He will represent Indian cinema in ICCR.
Controversy
- In 2018, Bollywood actress Tanushree Dutta accused Agnihotri of inappropriate behavior during filming. Vivek reportedly asked Tanushree to strip and dance to give an expression signal to her male co-star Irrfan Khan during a close-up shot, but he backed out after Irrfan and Suniel Shetty reprimanded Vivek. Agnihotri termed these allegations as “false and frivolous” and filed a defamation suit against Dutta.
- In 2018, Agnihotri claimed that he had received threats for using the name Mohammed in his short film Mohammad and Urvashi.
- Kapil Sharma and Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri’s controversy over the promotion of The Kashmir Files made headlines. The filmmaker claimed that Kapil Sharma and the makers of The Kapil Sharma Show refused to promote his movie. Due to this, Kapil Sharma was trolled by the netizens. Later, Kapil Sharma clarified that Vivek had not turned her down.
- When his film The Kashmir Files was released in Kashmir, there was a lot of chaos in a theater in Jammu, where people were also beaten up. Thereafter, the screening of The Kashmir Files was stopped.
Contact and Social Media Information
If you are a big fan of Vivek Agnihotri and you want to know more about him so you can follow him on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. On social media platforms, you will get the latest photos, videos, and updates about him.
Vivek Agnihotri at Instagram-@vivekagnihotri
Vivek Agnihotri at Twitter –@vivekagnihotri at Facebook-@VivekRanjanAgnihotri
Some Unknown Facts About Him
- Vivek’s full name is Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri and he belongs to the Brahmin community.
- Vivek was born in the Jawahar Colony of Gwalior city of Madhya Pradesh. He played and grew up in the soil of Gwalior.
- Vivek Agnihotri is the son of a family of freedom fighters who has been honored by the President for their contribution to Indian society.
- Vivek’s father was born in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, but he did his studies from Bhopal and started working there.
- He has founded an NGO named ‘I am Buddha Foundation’ with his wife. The purpose of this NGO is to mentor and train underprivileged youth in creative thinking and make them strong in the creative field.
- Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri led a social movement in the United States of America to raise funds for the victims of the ‘Bhopal Gas Tragedy’. Vivek returned to India to join the creation of a ‘New India’.
Thanks For Reading
Written By–Amit Shukla