Post the hit of ‘Dhurandhar’, Aditya Dhar he got a lot of love. His previous release ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’ also did well at the box office, but his journey in the film industry was not easy. Before achieving success as a director, Dhar spent years struggling and also faced disappointments early in his career.In a recent interview, the veteran filmmaker Priyadarshanwho had worked closely with Dhar in the past — recalled how the young filmmaker faced several hurdles before establishing himself. Dhar worked as Priyadarshan’s assistant director for almost three years in the early 2010s. Reflecting on their partnership, Priyadarshan says it is difficult to predict anyone’s future in the industry. “When Aditya was working with me, he was also writing the dialogues, so I think we worked together for three years. I was always positive about him because he had a wonderful language. That was his biggest asset at the time,” Priyadarshan said in an interview with Mashable India. The veteran director also revealed that he approached Dhar during a particularly depressing phase in his life. According to Priyadarshan, Dhar wrote the scripts for some projects but did not get proper credit for them. “He came to me when he was really disappointed with some of the films he had written, but he never got the credit,” shared Priyadarshan.Interestingly, Dhar’s initial ambitions were not limited to filmmaking. Priyadarshan revealed that the future director followed him once the cricket seriously and came close to being selected for the under-19 team, but circumstances prevented him.“He was a cricketer but he couldn’t get into the under-19 team due to some political influence and so he got kicked out. He was very disappointed sitting at home. Someone called him to watch a movie, and it was Gardish. He said he saw Gardish and said, “This is something I want to do and I have come to Mumbai.”Dhar got his breakthrough with Uri: The Surgical strike. Speaking to SCREEN after the film’s success in 2019, the director reflected on the long wait before his big moment arrived.“2019 has been my most rewarding year so far. After struggling with many projects that were rejected for whatever reason, the wait was worth it and rewarding. Uri not only entered the hearts of millions of people across the country, but also instilled a sense of patriotism across generations. That was the proudest moment for me.”After the success of Dhurandhar, Priyadarshan congratulated his former assistant with a heartfelt post on Instagram. Sharing a photo from the sets of Tezz, the veteran filmmaker wrote, “There is no greater happiness than seeing my student rise to such a huge success. Congratulations Aditya Dhar on Dhurandhar, and all the best wishes for Dhurandhar 2 from the bottom of my heart.Dhar responded to the message with emotion, expressing his gratitude to his mentor.“My dear Mr. Priyan… this means more to me than I can say in words! You believed in me when I was nobody, and all I had was conviction and a few pages of writing. You treated me as an equal, and gave me much more valuable than work: dignity, trust and love… I learned many times in the industry, where as a filmmaker, he taught me what not to do, but he taught me what to do. being”.Dhar also revealed that he wrote the dialogues for Priyadarshan’s films Aakrosh and Tezz, adding that his mentor’s influence shaped his career as a filmmaker.“I will forever be your student first. Thank you for everything sir. This success is as much mine as yours,” he wrote.Dhar’s next film Dhurandhar: The Revenge will hit the theaters on March 19, while Priyadarshan’s next directorial venture Bhooth Bangla will release on April 10.
