Anupriya Nagar, an economics graduate from the University of Bath, was only 21 when she decided to invest all her savings from three years of part-time work in the UK into ‘Hanuman Ansh’. It was her first-ever film project, despite having no prior experience in the industry. She had even secured a job in Zurich before returning to India in 2025, eventually taking on the role of co-producer on the project.
Producer says ‘age is just a number’
In an interview with Hindustan Times, she said, “I feel like age is just a number. My only focus was to bring Maharaj ji’s (Neem Karoli Baba) stories to the younger audience, to Gen Z. We get to know about such things through foreigners. I myself got to know about him through a foreigner and, being the youth of India, I was ashamed that I was not getting to know about him through his own story.”
Anupriya Nagar on taking the financial risk
For Anupriya, backing ‘Hanuman Ansh’ was never driven by the promise of financial returns.“This was the risk I was willing to take. I earned this money in the three years that I studied in the UK, doing part-time jobs. When I came across Maharaj ji at a beautiful juncture of my life, I just wanted to get into this project. I didn’t know what I could contribute because I had not done filmmaking, but I was ready to give my heart and soul to it. The project needed some investment at that particular time, so I said, ‘Whatever I have, I’m ready to give you guys.’”Her family, understandably, had reservations about the decision at first.“My father was protective. He said, ‘You don’t know much about filmmaking and you know how the industry is. You’re so young.’ But when I told him I was making a film on a noble saint and narrated the story, he was fine. They’ve been with me through thick and thin. In fact, I think they do more publicity for the film than I do!”
Producer reacts to the film’s box office success
Since then, the film’s box office trajectory has taken everyone by surprise. It started with a release across 300 screens before shrinking to just 30 by its eighth day. It eventually expanded to more than 1,500 screens and is now being released internationally, having crossed the Rs 100 crore mark.“My box office is people knowing about Maharaj ji,” she says. “But the collections reassure me that people are interested in this kind of content. People are making an effort to get his darshan in theatres.”
Producer confirms sequel, wants simplicity intact
The film closes with the promise of a sequel, and Anupriya confirms that it is very much on the cards.“We are not going to dishearten our viewers. Maharaj ji has given us so much in abundance regarding the box office, so we don’t have a choice but to make this.”What matters more to her, however, is preserving the simplicity that defined the original.“Our film was supposed to be made in Rs 2 crore. If we had made the same film in Rs 10 crore, it wouldn’t have come out this way. The rawness and simplicity came from the low budget, and we will definitely keep that in mind,” Anupriya concludes.
About ‘Hanuman Ansh’
‘Hanuman Ansh’, written and directed by Vishal Chaturvedi, is a spiritual drama drawing on the life and teachings of Neem Karoli Baba, popularly known as Maharaj Ji. Shobhinaw Satyaa portrays Neem Karoli Baba, while Vihaan Shedge plays Maharaj Ji at a different point in the story. The cast also includes Chandan Anand, Purnima Tiwari, Anil K Rastogi and Gulshan Pandey.The film has a runtime of 2 hours and 30 minutes and carries a U certificate.
