Amit Kumar graduated in film direction at the Indian national film school, FTII, in Pune. His student film, JUDGEMENT DAY, a single shot short film about a custodial death and its shocking cover-up, brought him a grant for Artist Residency from the Chicago Artists International Programme. His short film THE BYPASS received its world premiere at the 2003 Edinburgh International Film Festival. It won the Kodak BAFTA showcase, and was the UK entry for the Kodak showcase at Cannes 2004. The film also won 2nd prize at the Turner Classic Movies Shorts Awards at the London Film Festival and was selected as the Best Short Film at the Indian Film Festival in Los Angeles.

He went on to write and direct documentaries, commercials and serials for television including the critically acclaimed thriller KAGAAR (On the Edge) – EK GOLI SUBAH, EK GOLI SHAM (One bullet, to be Taken Twice a Day). SKETCHES, his documentary about how the disabled find ability, was screened at the Mumbai International Film Festival. Amit was associate director for the BAFTA winning UK director Asif Kapadia on THE WARRIOR, and with the Oscar winning German director, Florian Gallenberge, on his debut feature, SHADOWS OF TIME. More recently Amit was the second unit director on Asif Kapadia’s FAR NORTH in Norway, and Florian Gallenberger’s JOHN RABE in China.

2012 MONSOON SHOOTOUT
2003 THE BYPASS (short)

 

 

The Hollywood Reporter
20-May-2013
Author: Deborah Young
“A cunningly intricate first film from India, Monsoon Shootout combines the best of two worlds – a ferocious Mumbai cops and gangsters drama, and a satisfyingly arty plot that turns in on itself to examine the outcome of three possible choices a rookie cop might make when he confronts a ruthless killer.”
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Screen
20-May-2013
Author: Lee Marshall
“Serving up a portion of Rashomon with a side of Sliding Doors, this tasty Mumbai crime story offers multiple outcomes of one fateful decision in a rookie cop’s professional life. Though it sounds like a potentially experimental premise, Monsoon Shootout is a glossy ethical drama designed to appeal equally to more upscale Indian audiences and worldwide genre fans… Monsoon Shootout delivers it in a more hard-boiled package that will appeal to a younger demographic.”
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The Guardian
20-May-2013
Author: Peter Bradshaw
"It's an entertaining popcorn-movie with a twist, for which commercial success is on the cards. There should be space for pictures like it in Cannes."
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