Vibhu Virendra Puri (born 28 January 1980) is an Indian director, screenwriter and songwriter. After graduating from FTII, he started assisting

Sanjay Leela Bhansali Sanjay Leela Bhansali (born 24 February 1963) is an Indian film director, producer, screenwriter, editor and music composer, who works in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of several awards, including seven National Film Awards and twelve Filmf ...

and co-wrote two of his films; ''

Saawariya ''Saawariya'' () is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language musical romance film directed and produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's 1848 short story ''White Nights''. The film marked the debuts of Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kap ...

'' (2007) and '' Guzaarish'' (2010). He has directed and written dialogues for popular web shows Taj: reign of Revenge (

Zee5 ZEE5 or Z5 is an Indian subscription video on demand and over-the-top streaming service, owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in India on 14 February 2018 with content in 12 languages. The ZEE5 mobile app is available on We ...

) and

Heeramandi ''Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar'' is a 2024 Indian Hindi-language period drama television series created and directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Set in the red-light district of Heera Mandi in Lahore during the Indian independence movement, th ...

(

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

). He made his feature film directorial debut with ''

Hawaizaada ''Hawaizaada'' () is a 2015 Indian Hindi drama film written, directed and produced by Vibhu Puri along with Reliance Entertainment. Inspired by the biography of Shivkar Bapuji Talpade, the film stars Ayushmann Khurrana, Mithun Chakraborty and Pa ...

'' (2015). Apart from films, he has directed many

television commercials A television advertisement (also called a commercial, spot, break, advert, or ad) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization. It conveys a message promoting, and aiming to market, a product, service or idea. ...

. He is currently working on his feature Ul-jalool IshQ.

Career

A gold medalist from the

Film and Television Institute of India The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) is a film institute under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India and aided by the Central Government of India. ...

(FTII), Vibhu Puri's debut feature as a director and producer, ''

'', featuring

Mithun Chakraborty Mithun Chakraborty (born Gouranga Chakraborty; 16 June 1950) is an Indian actor, film producer, screenwriter, entrepreneur and politician who predominantly works in Hindi cinema, Hindi and Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali cinema. In a career spa ...

and

Ayushmann Khurrana Ayushmann Khurrana (born Nishant Khurrana; 14 September 1984) is an Indian actor and singer who works in Hindi films. Known for his portrayals of ordinary men often battling social norms, he is the recipient of several awards, including a Na ...

. It is the untold story of

Shivkar Bapuji Talpade Shivkar Bāpuji Talpade() was an Indian instructor with an interest in Sanskrit and aviation. He lived in Mumbai, and is claimed to have constructed and flown an unmanned, heavier-than-air aircraft in 1895. Contemporary accounts of a successf ...

, who is claimed to have been the first to build a plane. In January 2015, the film opened to great reviews by critics, though it did not make a huge impact at the box office. Before making his feature, Puri assisted

on various feature films. He also wrote ''

'', '' Guzaarish'' and ''

Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi ''Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi'' () is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by Bela Bhansali Sehgal, starring Farah Khan, Boman Irani, Kavin Dave, Shammi, Kurush Deboo and Daisy Irani. The film takes its inspiration f ...

'', all made by SLB Films. To add to it, Puri also penned songs for ''Guzaarish'' and ''Hawaizaada''. He also assisted

Vishal Bharadwaj Vishal Bhardwaj (born 4 August 1965) is an Indian filmmaker, music composer, and playback singer. He is known for his work in Hindi cinema, and is the recipient of nine National Film Awards and a Filmfare Award. Bhardwaj made his debut as a mu ...

on '' The Blue Umbrella''. In the world of advertising, he started off as a writer in Contract Delhi before getting into filmmaking. In the last three years, he has been directing commercials. He has directed more than 150 films and has collaborated on campaigns with various agencies like Ogilvy, McCann, Leo Burnett, Scarecrow, Rediff, and Mudra amongst others for major brands like Maggi, HDFC,

Reckitt Benckiser Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC, currently branded as Reckitt, formerly known as Reckitt Benckiser, is a British multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Slough, United Kingdom. It is a producer of health, hygiene and nutrition prod ...

, P&G, Zee, Heinz, Star Sports, Dabur, Parle G, Himani, Emami, and Amazon. Puri has made films for Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi agencies and brands. Besides Hindi and English, he has made ad films in various languages like Telugu, Malayalam, Haryanvi, and Bangla. Two of Puri's student films, ''Chaurus Chaand'' and '' Chabiwali Pocket Watch'', have traveled to various film festivals in India and abroad. Both of them had the unique distinction of being selected for

Indian Panorama The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is an annual film festival currently held in Goa, on the western coast of India. The festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excelle ...

. ''Chauras Chaand'' is an ode to the life and poetry of rebel Punjabi poet

Avtar Singh Sandhu Avtar Singh Sandhu (9 September 1950 – 23 March 1988), who wrote under the pen name Pash, was an Indian poet, one of the major poets in Punjabi of the 1970s. He was killed by Sikh extremists on 23 March 1988. His strongly left-wing views w ...

('Pash'). ''Chabiwali Pocket Watch'' featured at many festivals including Cannes (where it was awarded Kodak emerging filmmaker of the world, 2006); has won various international awards, and also the national

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An award may be d ...

from the Indian president. The film is set in Old Delhi and deals with story of a romantic Urdu poet now dying anonymously, and the struggle between his daughter and an opportunist publisher. This film was also India's official entry to the

Student Oscars The Student Academy Awards are presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in an annual competition for college and university filmmakers. Description The awards were originally named the Student Film Awards and were first pres ...

Career

Discography

Filmography

Films

Television

Music videos

References

External links