Bullets Over Bombay

by Uday Bhatia

In 1998, Satya opened to widespread critical acclaim. At a time when Bollywood was still rediscovering romance, Ram Gopal Varma's film dared to imagine the ordinary life of a Mumbai gangster. It kicked off a new wave of Hindi gangster films that depicted a vital, gritty side of Mumbai, rarely shown in mainstream cinema until then.

More than two decades later, it has become an iconic film. When it was released, the regular moviegoer would have been hard-pressed to recognise more than a couple of names in the film's credits. Today, it reads like an honour roll - Anurag Kashyap, Manoj Bajpayee, Vishal Bhardwaj, Saurabh Shukla.

Speaking to the people who made Satya a landmark film, Uday Bhatia tells the incredible story of how it all came together, how it drew from the gangster and street film traditions, and why it went on to become a modern classic.

Genres: Nonfiction, India

243 pages, Paperback

Published November 30, 2021

Reviews

[Dalia (book_o_creativity) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

Bollywood is something I'm not a die-hard fan of but yet I'm always intrigued to know more about the actors and actresses and something other than the children of filmic lineages sounds appealing to me enough.

In 1998, Satya made an impact on the Hindi film industry with it's gritty approach. Ram Gopal Varma dared to make a film on the life of Mumbai gangsters, it not only paved a path for upcoming gangster movies but it kickstarted a new genre of films. After two decades this book delves more into the nitty-gritty aspects of the film, cast and crew.

A satirical way of diving deeper into an iconic film which gave a push to Hindi movies. This was a fun read. The writing style is good, but often bejewelled in places where it should and where it shouldn't. There are instances where the writing took complex turns which might cause confusion and may mask the actual meaning. This book is filled with informations and portrays the othe side of the curtains. Surely a book for movie buffs with loads of information and tons of perspectives. It's as unique as the genre itself.

I have a mixed feeling for this book, I enjoyed the jibes thrown by the author and the taunting way of conjuring the memories yet this book is not entirely for me. It failed to make lasting impression on me. I would suggest readers to pick this book if this genre really interests you.

[Ishan Agrawal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bollywood over the years has seen remarkable shifts in the way it delivers the plot and also on the subjects it craft stories. For instance in late 90s it was all about the iconic Kumar Sanu , Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnic musical love tales while the 70s was more about movies around some social prejudices and crime at the forefront. Since the past decade or so ,it has delved more into meaningful cinema with Akshay Kumar delivering some of the best work in his career year after year. Though in 1998 something significant happened when Ram Gopal Verma created 'Satya', a flick that opened to widespread critical acclaim and closely scrutinized the gangster era of Mumbai. What followed was a wave of such work showing the grey albeit the real side of the financial capital of the country.

The book takes the readers to a roller coaster ride about what it actually takes to weave a creative work that is quite different from the movies that are usually dished out to cater to a wide segment of audience.It is a deeply researched novel that will actually fascinate the ones who are intrigued about the technical side of the movies in general and cinematography aspect in particular.

For most people who are movie buffs its hardly an affair of 2-3 hours but how much efforts goes in finalising even a few second sequence was quite interesting to see. Though the book is definitely not for all kind of readers as it will not appeal to those who are picking it up to get some inside stories of the popular movies or something of that sort. It is purely for those who are either excited about film making or just want to get a hang of it.

[Umesh Kesavan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uday Bhatia's "behind-the-scenes" book on how the 1998 classic gangster film "Satya" was made focuses on the intricate details without losing the historical perspective. There are two long chapters on the Indian gangster film and the Bombay/Mumbai city film which meticulously document every film or even moments from history. The audacious vision of Ram Gopal Varma, the maverick director who succumbed to mediocrity in later years , the realistic filmmaking and the juicy anecdotes (like how the legendary "Mumbai ka King Kaun" cliff scene lasts just thirty seconds not because of any cinematic preferences but due to Manoj Bajpayee's fear of heights) all come together seamlessly in this history-meets-trivia-meets-love for cinema tome.

[Sahitya · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was more of a 3.5 I think.

I don’t think I remember much about the movie Satya except the two most popular songs and how much I loved the acting of Manoj Bajpai and Shefali Shah. I was only a 10 year old and I probably shouldn’t have been watching a gangster film but I was a fan of RGV’s movies and me and my family were excited to watch it. I don’t know what I felt then but I’m hindsight, it’s easy to see the kind of impact this movie had on Hindi cinema, not only in terms of the gangster movie genre but also the amount of talent that came out of it, who remain influential and honored to this day… except maybe the maker RGV himself.

So when I saw this audiobook suddenly while browsing, I knew I had to read it. Books about Hindi cinema always fascinate but I’m never sure where to look for and who are the authors writing them. So a chance encounter felt like providence and I started listening immediately. I liked how this book wasn’t much about the gossipy side of filmmaking and concentrated more on the technical aspects, how difficult it was to make a film like this in those times and all the lengths that the technicians went to, to make it possible. It’s a story of grit and resilience but also silliness and conviction and you can totally see all that reflected in the movie. There was parts of the book which weren’t as engaging as I wanted them to be, but listening to it was an easy experience and I liked the narration by Faraz Khan.

If you are a casual fan, I don’t know if this book will work for you. But if you like knowing a bit about the filmmaking process behind one of Hindi cinema’s defining movie from the 90s, you should check this out.

[Vaibhav Srivastav · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great Pop-history book exploring gangster films in Indian cinema in general ranging from Kismat (1943) to movies made in early 2000s and focussing in particular on 'Satya' which is widely considered a watershed moment in Indian cinema. Full of 90s Nostalgia and interesting trivia as well as an exploration of the city of Mumbai as a character across different films.

[Saumya · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a beautifully researched book on the movie Satya. Recommended to everyone who is studying cinematography or are an aspiring director.

btw do you guys watch a Bollywood movie?

An enchanting and detailed look at the making of one of the finest movies of Indian cinema - Vishal Bhardwaj

Our Bollywood cinema is obsessed with their gangster, we must have all seen the movie Maqbool, Sarkar, Gangster, Munna Bhai and on OTT platform Mirzapur and Sacred Games. This book is a BTS of what Ram Gopal Varma went through while filming this movie. The Detailed research and extensive write up with easy flowy language make this book easy and interesting to read.

This movie, Satya was realized in 1998, At that Time Bollywood was making Family dramas and romantic comedies when Ram Gopal Varma decided to release a gangster movie Satya, which was ultimately a blockbuster and gave fame to the finest actors like Manoj Bajpayee, Saurabh Shukla, Anurag Kashyap.

My take: This book was a fun read, The book moved at the perfect pace, it was neither too rushed up nor too slow, As I have said if you are interested in cinematography then pick this book, Ram Gopal Varma has made this block baster movie in a really low budget. And books with pictures/BTS scenes have a special place in my heart, it makes it look so real and interesting.

[E.T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 My wife's friend called "Pushpa" मैली which was a strange word to use for a movie. But when I watched Allu Arjun & co. I could get what she was saying. And I was reminded of "Satya".
In the 1990s, before the multiplexes took over, commercial movies were formulaic and had to have a star (or star-kids). At the very least, the lead actors had to look elegant / glamorous. Satya daringly broke both the rules - (mostly) unknown faces with unkempt beards.
Secondly, the cinematography (or colour palette) was grim and unadorned. And the dialogues and even the songs seemed to have a raw edge. And this was done without making it boring like "Ardh Satya". In short, it was a pathbreaker. And I loved it !
From RGV the man, his philosophy of film-making, and his massive impact on Bollywood with his "factory" (true studio), to the various aspects of film-making - everything has been covered very well by the author. And these "making of" books have become a favourite sub-genre for me now.
PS:- I was surprised to know that RGV hated "Goli maar bheje mein". I think it was a work of genius. While Deepak Chopra writes trash disguised as philosophy,
Gulzar saab wrote philosophy disguised as trash :)

[bangalimeyreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worldwide the bollywood movies are considered romantic and emotional yet in 1998, Satya was a one of a kind movie which set its own trend in the glam world of bollywood.
The film follows the protagonist named Satya, an immigrant who comes to Mumbai looking for a job, befriends Bhiku Mhatre and is drawn into the Mumbai underworld. Thus, this movie focuses on the underworld of Mumbai and the dark and twisted tales of gangsters.
This book holds in the background tales and pictures of putting together this whole movie. An Indian definitely loves bollywood movies but a book including in details about the movie and background scenes is a treat to read.

[Arcopol Chaudhuri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding. The kind of book this film deserves.

[Varun Bhakay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just how far do films go in breaking the mould, in shaping what comes after? You look at discourse today and virtually every other Hindi film is called "pathbreaking" for no reason other than the fact that it may do things a little differently, and sometimes not even that, sometimes just because Taran Adarsh needs to throw some words into his "review".

But Satya, directed by Ram Gopal Varma, broke new ground not only in its exploration of the middle-gangster genre but also in terms of the trajectories of the careers of some of its alum - Anurag Kashyap is probably the most notable of the lot, having gone on to direct more than a dozen features, but there's Saurabh Shukla too, Apurva Asrani co-edited it, Vishal Bhardwaj composed the songs, and of course - Manoj Bajpayee.

Film critic Uday Bhatia (one of the few in that community who can actually call himself a critic) uses Bullets Over Bombay as a means to chart out the story of Satya in a multi-dimensional fashion. How many other "young" people could write so lovingly of Navketan Films' (the Anand brothers) work in the 50s and 60s, you wonder as Bhatia describes the birth of the Bollywood crime film in its truest sense. Who would mention Vinod Chopra and JP Dutta in the same breath when tackling films which probably influenced Satya?

In his quest to do justice to Satya and to the gangster film, Bhatia travels as far back as the 40s, lamenting as good film buffs do about the abysmal state of film archiving in India very briefly before he jumps into the films that were produced over the years and how they captured not only crime but also Bombay, for that forms part of Bhatia's interest - the city film and how it came about.

It's a breezy read, the book, but you might want to keep a notebook handy to take down all the films Bhatia mentions (I found myself particularly interested in the Navketan productions, and far less so in whatever was made in the 70s and 80s, what with having turned Parinda off midway not too long ago). Bhatia merges research with plenty of interviews conducted with the team behind Satya: Varma, Kashyap, Shukla, Bajpayee, lead actor JD Chakravarthy, Bhardwaj.....most, if not all, leave Bhatia more than a little thrown with their mismatched stories, but the writer manages to work even that into the book.

Bhatia doesn't have an acidic pen, but he doesn't spare his subject, nor those who collaborated on it. Repeatedly, the reader is reminded to take Team Satya's statements with a pinch of salt. But it would be incorrect to say that Bhatia's coverage of the film is what makes the book what it is. That really ought to be credited to his reading of film, especially Hindi cinema, through the ages. Sure, there are references to the old American gangster films of the Prohibition era, and to seminal works like Mani Ratnam's Nayakan, but Bhatia chooses to not only look at those films but also at the "lesser" cinema that populated the 80s in Bollywood and the Parallel Wave of the time. It's the sign of a film buff, because Bhatia doesn't distinguish between a Hathyar and an Ardh Satya in the way that one might expect of a critic - his contrasting of the two very distinct types of filmmaking is more nuanced, more layered, and ultimately in service of arriving at Satya.

This is a pretty neat documentation of the urban crime film in Hindi cinema, however brief, and for that alone, I'd suggest it to people who are actually into films. Bonus if you're a Satya fan, of course. I, for one, am yet to watch it.

[Prathyush Parasuraman]

Uday Bhatia is incredibly meticulous (as a journalist and a critic too -- his writing and reviews at Mint is always sincere) and that shows in this book. He situates Satya, the 1998 film, between the gangster film and the Bombay film. The book veers heavily towards the academic in the chapters on the gangster and the Bombay film genre, and these are heavy stretches to read, especially if you, like me, are not convinced of situating Satya so emphatically. Also, Satya feels too distant from the films of 50s and 60s, in tone, theme, and tactic for it to be considered part of that tapestry. It doesn't even seem to be much of a reference for the people involved. (I also am not sure of his claim that Tamil and Malayalam Gangster films took the baton from Bombay Gangster films, maybe he could have quoted some directors from the South to establish the link?)

The retrospective re-evaluation of the film is thus less compelling than the stretches when he speaks of the making of the film. I wish the book had more of that, because after a point I felt like I was reading two different books, one about a genre, one about a film.

I got a chance to speak with Uday about some things he wrote in the book. You can read it here. His sincerity is, much like that in the book, infectious.

[Faraaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great great book, not just for fans of Satya or RGV but fans of Hindi Cinema in general. Indian cinema rarely gets documented in this way. For example, the discourse almost always revolves around "Satya/Company is the best Indian gangster movie made" or the comparisons to The Godfather which I always found reductive and incomplete.

I always found myself pondering on how Satya relates or compares to Parinda or Deewar? Films don't exist in a vacuum. They are part of an ongoing legacy, and feed off of each other. This isn't referring to direct references in the making but rather being informed by, and contributing to the same landscape.

Gangster films before Satya in Hindi Cinema were also inspired by real life gangsters of Bombay, just like Satya but then why does Satya feel different?

This is why this book exists. Uday Bhatia has written the most comprehensive book on the Hindi Gangster film and places it under the larger genre of the Hindi Noir starting with a 1943 film Kismet.

With painstaking detail, Bhatia covers the decades since Independence, Dev Anand, Guru Dutt, Vijay Anand, Salim-Javed, to Hathyar to VVC/Parinda to finally the 90s.

I approached this section with trepidation, wondering if he would cover Is Raat Ki Subah Nahin? There's never been much talk about this film and I never thougth there would be another soul on this planet who would want to explore the link between Is Raat Ki Subah Nahin and Satya.

All I had was a random blog post by Anurag Kashyap back during the PassionForCinema days when he had fallen out with RGV and was talking about how Sudhir Mishra's film gave birth to Satya, and how at one point RGV wanted Sudhir Mishra to write Satya, something RGV always denied.

Then there was a rare interview by Sudhir Mishra, about how Is Raat Ki Subah Nahin was a better film than Satya in that it didn't idealize the gangster the way Satya did and it deserved more attention than Satya.

Other than a drunken post by Anurag Kashyap going through his darkest phase (films getting banned left, right and centre) in the mid 2000s, and the Mishra interview now clearly lost in the dustbins of the Internet, there wasn't much else.

Indian journalists are not interested in stories like these. No one else ever made any references. No one else ever compared these films. Until Bullets over Bombay of course.

This is one of the best film books written on Hindi Cinema.

[Meghaa Pradyumnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

--
🎬 Have you ever wondered about what goes into the making of your favourite movie, the people involved, the stories behind them, why the movie clicked with the audience and why it's relevant even today?
--
🎬 This book is about Satya — one of the finest gangster movies made in India (Bollywood) and which has become a cult classic! It tells us the story behind the making of this film and also a deep dive into the gangster genre in Hindi cinema. It bought together a bunch of talented people who had been sidelined by the industry, young actors thirsty for meaty roles and creative minds who were willing to work under a director who could literally do anything on a given day. One might have thought that this could lead to an epic disaster, rather it gave birth to a movie that is still talked about today and the people behind it going onto create some of the finest films of Bollywood!
--
🎬 Satya was released in 1998, at a time when Bollywood was churning out romantic comedies and family dramas. Director Ram Gopal Verma decided to make a gangster movie, which turned out to be a blockbuster, giving the much required fame to brilliant actors like Manoj Bajpayee, Saurabh Shukla and Anurag Kashyap.
--
🎬 The book features interviews with the cast and crew of Satya and you can see for yourself the amount of research that has gone into penning down this book. For cinephiles aka those who love reading about movies and their makings, this is a perfect book. It even has pictures taken back in the day when the film was being shot!
--
🎬 This book is paced rightly and doesn't feel rushed; if you are into cinematography or filmmaking, then definitely grab this enchanting book!

[Suyogaya Awasthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

“You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star”. The line of the mighty Friedrich Nietzsche as stated above bears a poignant relationship with the overall theme and context of the book at hand for its reflective of the urge to dare and to do things differently and how the same happened will be briefly delineated in the below paragraphs.
Delving further, the length of the book is 206 pages and the overall theme revolves around the facets surrounding the creation of the masterpiece “Satya” which still has its fair share of eminence as it reflects a total shift from the prevailing trends of the late 90s. As we proceed further, the first chapter of the book verily sets the tone right from the title to the content it holds which is inclusive of instances that led to the materialization of Satya and further marking a sense of progression for the whole of the industry as well. The next chapter titled “Ten Scenes” begins by describing the scene which features a funeral pyre during the past twilight time and lays down surprising features of Mumbai. As the chapters progress further, one can easily sense an attempt to comprehensively present a storyline which details the whole of the movie which took the cinema to newer heights, or we can say a new zenith.
The writing style of the book is descriptive and stresses upon bringing a sense of synchronicity with each chapter thus coming as a book that is a must-read for anyone willing to go for a read which takes the reader to an insightful and artistic journey.

[Diptakirti Chaudhuri]

An ode to Satya starts with the origin story of Ram Gopal Varma, segues into a history of the Hindi gangster film and then deftly chronicles the 'Mumbai film'. Bhatia's research (as well as his background reading) is voluminous but doesn't weigh down the prose, which flows smoothly - thankfully (!) not mimicking the staccato mood of the film.

The book's real contribution is the framing of the context in which Satya was made and how the future rockstars (as opposed to superstars) of the film's cast/crew used Satya as both literal and figurative springboards. Bhatia presents nuggets from the future filmography of Anurag Kashyap, Manoj Bajpayee, Saurabh Shukla and - of course - Ram Gopal Varma to mention clear linear influences as opposed to nebulous 'inspired touches'.
And it ends with Anurag Kashyap affectionately saying about his 2019 film, Manmarziyaan that "I have made my Rangeela!"

As a non-serious reader of cinema books, my only points of confusion were Bhatia's references to Hollywood or European cinema meant to clarify certain points (e.g. "Amala walks into the screen like Buster Keaton in Sherlock Jr") that didn't end up clarifying, after all!

Overall, a brilliant tribute to the mercurial genius called Ram Gopal Varma and his motley crew that leads to answering that question: "Kaun hai yeh Satya?"

[Sakshi Bassi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bullets over Bombay is a nonfiction book that talks about the making of Satya- one of the finest movies in Bollywood, the movie that paved way for Hindi gangster movies that depicted the gritty side of Mumbai which was rarely depicted in cinema at that time.

The time when whole Bollywood was making films based on family drama or romance, Ram Gopal Verma decided to release this unique and unexplored concept based film which eventually turned out to be a blockbuster leaving a mark in the industry.

The book is very well researched and quite insightful. There are images included of behind the scenes which made it interesting to read. The writing style is lucid. But it was not that impactful read because if you're not interested in BTS of Satya or movies as a whole, then you may find this book kinda boring. However, if you're a cinematography student or want to become a director, then you should definitely pick this book up because it'll make you aware of a lot of pros and cons. Overall, it's a well researched book but only pick it up if the genre interests you, otherwise you may skip it.

[Sayani · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives us the glimpses of the first gangster movie that was made in Bollywood when romance was ruling the industry. 𝙎𝙖𝙩𝙮𝙖, a 1998 movie that gained a widespread acclaimation. The time when romance genre was ruling the industry this 𝙍𝙖𝙢 𝙂𝙤𝙥𝙖𝙡 𝙑𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙖 Film dared to portray the ordinary life of Mumbai Gangster in the big screen. It was showcased as a brave act of portraying the reality of anti-socials and gangsters which were rarely shown on mainstream media then and with this movie's success it also gave rise to a lot of movies based on gangsters in the industry, this movie also gave us some finest actors such as Manoj Bajpayee, Vishal Bharadwaj, Saurav Shukla

In this book Uday Bhatia gives us the incredible story of making of this movie, the thought process, the casting and cinematography and everything which is entertaining as well as informative to read. This book is well paced and written in cogent narrative. Overall I enjoyed reading this book it was a fun, enjoyable as well as an experimental read for me. Will recommend to people who are interested in this genre of books.
--𝐌𝐲 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬--
4🌟

[Mohit Rathore · Rating 4 out of 5]

📍 This book is about a movie which released in 1988. This movie was the first one to be on a Mumbai gangster, showing gritty side of Mumbai.

📍 At a time when Bollywood was still rediscovering romance, Ram Gopal Varma's film dared to imagine the ordinary life of a Mumbai gangster. It kicked off a new wave of Hindi gangster films that depicted a vital side of Mumbai, which was rarely shown in mainstream cinema until then.

📍 Now, it has become an iconic film. When it was released, the regular moviegoer would have been hard to recognise more than a couple of names in the film's credits. Today, it reads like an honour roll - Manoj Bajpayee, Anurag Kashyap, Vishal Bhardwaj, and Saurabh Shukla.

📍 The author Uday Bhatia has told the story of how it(film making, story and all) all came together, how it drew from the gangster and street film traditions, and why and how it went on to become a modern classic.

📍 The writing work and the research done on it is well done, language of the book is also easy to understand. The book is a good to go. Check it out to more more about it.

[Nikhil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meticulously researched love story about the making of one of the most influential Bollywood films ever made. Very engaging read.

I happened to stumble upon this book at the Bombay airport - the cover lending itself like a pulp homage to the iconic characters from the classic film. My first reaction was "Oh this might be one of those pulp potboiler thrillers, and the artist took inspiration from Satya". But after glancing randomly inside, made up my mind, immediately bought it. Best impromptu buying in recent history for me.

Bhatia kept it simple yet pacy and his honest historical documentarian approach to unravel the making of Satya, with multiple versions from the makers, made a very compelling read.

If you are a fan of Satya, pick it up, you'll love it.
If you are a fan of Bollywood, pick it up, you'll love it cos it opens up the drapes and invites you to the unconventional way how a young turk of a director assembled a motley crew, took exemplary risk, and literally it was lightning in a bottle.

Worth it. Made me watch the film this week. Thinking of re-reading again.

[Raza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Satya is a combination of 2 things: 2 different traditions in hindi cinema: the city film (focuses on bombay) & gangster film. R G Verma, inspired by films such as Ardh Satya/Parinda/Bandit Queen/iss Raat ki Subha Nahn, wanted his take on the city ( and the criminals within it) he had been residing in for a few years. He found young hungry kids from Mumbai/Delhi theatre groups (as writers & actors & technicians), got an American to shoot half the movie, and released an honest take on city gangsters. The killing of Gulshan kumar in '97 had also piqued his interested in the psychology of hitmen.

The film was a grand success. Its crew went on to make grand pieces of cinema & revitalised gangster genre from 98-2005 after which bombay gangster films started becoming cliched. In the 2010's the gangster genre moved outside bombay (popularised by GOW by Kashayp). The mumbai city film tradition is going strong, where directors are discovering more strands of the city life (apart from crime).

The book is a love letter to gangster & city films in india & an honest retelling of the making of this movie. Do read if either of the above fascinates you.

[Sanjay Banerjee · Rating 3 out of 5]

A detailed look at the making of the movie Satya. Through this, the author tracks the rise of the genre of truly gangster and gangland movies with this film, how this genre was different from earlier movies depicting crimes and criminals in Mumbai, the changed approach to filming and location-based shooting and the enrolment of little-known actors, scriptwriters, cinematographers etc. many of whom made a name for themselves in times to come. For a layperson like me, the book provided insights into the various stages in the creation of a movie starting from conceptualisation, building a team of producers, directors, cinematographers, scriptwriters, castings actors etc as also the economics of movies, movie halls, multiplexes etc. The book will be of greater interest to movie buffs who are genuinely interested in the history of various genre of Indian films and techniques of Indian film making. For me, some of those details made the book somewhat monotonous.

[Akshay Patil · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Bullets Over Bombay: Satya and the Hindi Film Gangster'book by author Uday Bhatia. The book is based on a bollywood movie which is on Mumbai gangster movie named Satya which is released in 1988. The book tells the story behind the movie how the dialogues are written, scene casting, detailed look of making, etc.

The movie is produced and directed by Ram Gopal Varma with the best actors like Manoj Bajpayee, Anurag Kashyap, Saurabh Shukla. It is the first of Varma's Gangster trilogy about organized crime in India. The movie becomes a blockbuster and becomes history. And introduced a new gangster genre and street film traditions in Bollywood movies.

It looks like the author has done well research while writing the book. The perfect and eye-catchy cover and title of the book perfectly suites the book. The language of the book is simple and easy to understand. The book is recommended to all those who like to read other than love stories.

[Nishant Bhagat · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a movie buff like me such books are always an attraction. But unlike other books I have read based on the stories of famous movies, this one was different. How? Well the author got different versions of the same movie from the many creators of this masterpiece. I found that really fascinating.

I have read the director RGV's book recently and he too isn't very clear on many aspects of how the movie came together. It is commendable how well the author has pieced the entire story of how the movie got made.

I found this part where he traces the genealogy of the gangster movies within bollywood very intriguing. I always thought the old B&W movies were boring but now I need to create a watchlist of all these movies and watch them!

This book is a must read for all movie buffs especially Satya fans

[Pranjal Awasthi]

The box office release of Satya was a pretty avant-guard moment for the Indian film industry. With the benefit of hindsight, one can say that Satya changed the way Indian gangsters were viewed in the mainstream. They brought back the gangsters from the crazed maniacs of Shaan and the dacoit of sholay to a very urban criminal who operated in the by lanes of the big city and lived very normal lives all beat with the addition of playing the rules of society to his own tune. Bullets over Bombay is a very fascinating read about how the gangster evolved in the Indian film industry and how it continues to do so with the changing socio, political and economic landscapes of the country. Uday Bhatia's scholarship is very eclectic, rooted in not just Indian cinema but also global Cinema and that makes the book a very engaging read for all movie enthusiasts cinema, buffs, writers and actors.

[Raghav Bikhchandani · Rating 4 out of 5]

A long form demonstration of why Bhatia is the best working film journalist in Bollywood, yet to be corrupted by access driven puff pieces. The level of research, nuanced analysis, wealth of knowledge and ability to piece a coherent narrative out of disparate embellishment loving interviewees is unparalleled. What prevents perfection here though is his (or his editor's) decision to nerd out over long chapters on the history of hindi gangster cinema and Bombay on screen right after taking us through ten iconic scenes from Satya. Even the biggest "cinephiles" would balk at the 68 pages (a third of the book) dedicated to Bhatia doing a rudimentary impersonation of Gyan Prakash, which largely serves as an excuse to push this above novella territory. Especially egregious when it soon becomes clear that all RGV roads lead to The Godfather

[Avidd_Readerr · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book constructed on cinemas behind the scenes is approximately which I declaim for the chief stint. The motion picture shadows the central character called Satya, a colonist who emanates to Mumbai observing for a occupation, make friends with Bhiku Mhatre and is haggard into the Mumbai gangland. Satya was on the rampage in 1998, at that Period Bollywood was production Domestic performances and quixotic entertainments as soon as Ram Gopal Varma obvious to issue a criminal picture Satya, which was at the end of the day a runaway success. The book topographies consultations by means of the cast list and team of Satya. The picture-perfect and stunning concealment and label of the volume impeccably matching set the book.

[(a)lyss(a) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review..

This book follows the creation of the movie Satya and everything that went into it.

I'm not familiar with Satya but am a fan of Bollywood and was interested in learning more behind the scenes. The book gives a lot of context to the movie's creation as well as why it was received the way it was by audiences. This book takes us behind the scenes through anecdotes, interviews, and more about how the movie was made. It's interesting to hear such different stories are told about the same experiences and how the cast and crew have such varied recollections.

It's a very historical and interesting look at Bollywood history and how art imitates life and why this experience hasn't been recreated.

[Shivangi Yadav · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many of us loves to watch the movies which is based on Gangster and all... Many of us was curious to watch mirzapur season 2 when it was released last year.


As by seeing the cover we can analyse that this book is based on Bollywood Gangster story. But what's the story? I don't want to give any spoiler but would like to say that I love the plot of the story.

Uday bhatia ji did his well in this editon. Lots of research has been done before writing the script.

If you are curious to know about Gangster life then you must read it. This book is based on Gangster of 1988.

[Vidhika Yadav]

This book chronicles the making of the film "Satya." The book provides a plot summary of the entire film, which shows how Ram Gopal Varma paved the ground for future gangster films, ushered in a new genre, and elevated 90s Bollywood to new heights by crafting a film about Mumbai criminals.Ram Gopal Varma decided to release Satya, a gangster picture, at a period when Bollywood was mostly focused on family dramas and romantic movies.The book not only exposes details about the film's production but also gives readers about how life was then.Satya isn't just about crime and criminals but is also about the city of Bombay.It captures the raw reality of everyday Bombay.This book delves deeper into the film's production, actors, and crew after two decades. It is a book for movie buffs, for people interested in cinematography, and for those who want go know more about historical backdrop of Bombay.

[Guru · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great tour through the history of Hindi movies, with every bit of film nostalgia from my teenage years right up to the phenomenon of "Satya". A supremely satisfying and fast read, this book talks about the gangster genre of films in India and also about Bombay as it is presented in the movies from the 1940s to the 1990s. My only complaint is it was too short :)