‘I Lost It’: Anurag Kashyap on Netflix Shelving His Project 'Maximum City'

Anurag Kashyap opens up about the shelving of his Netflix project 'Maximum City' and the impact it had on him.

Anurag Kashyap speaks about nepotism and more.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

After the controversy surrounding Saif Ali Khan and Mohd Zeeshan Ayyub’s Tandav, several web shows and films slated for release on various streaming platforms were either shelved or reworked. Anurag Kashyap’s adaptation of Suketu Mehta’s Maximum City for Netflix was one such project that faced a similar fate.

Prior to entering pre-production, Netflix withdrew from the project, after the debacle over Tandav and failed to give "clear reasons", as per a report by Washington Post.

Kashyap spoke to the publication, stating, "It was my best work. I’ve never done such honest, important work." He emphasized, "Maximum City was where all my energy went. I was heartbroken. I totally lost it."

Adding that the trajectory of events underlined that his project was facing "invisible censorship."

He opened up about how he had believed that streaming would be a space where he would hone his art but those dreams were promptly quashed.

"Streaming was finally the space I was waiting for. The disappointment is it was supposed to be a revolution, but it was not. Like social media, it was supposed to empower people, but it became a tool," he added.

Kashyap also shared that he was completely lost after the incident admitting to falling into a prolonged state of depression, taking to drinking and also shared that this was the time he suffered two heart attacks. 

Maximum City is a non-fiction novel that depicts four perspectives on how people live in Mumbai. The book is also a Pulitzer Prize finalist.