Neeraj Pandey is an Indian

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 film director

Film director

A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...

 best known for his drama-thriller film, A Wednesday (2008), for which he won the Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director

Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director

The Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director is a National Film Award - Golden Lotus Award, given to a feature film director's first film.The National Film Award - Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director winners:...

. His work on the film was highly praised by audiences as well as critics . He was nominated for "Best Director" category by Filmfare Awards

Filmfare Awards

The Filmfare Awards are presented annually by The Times Group to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Hindi language film industry of India. The Filmfare ceremony is one of the oldest and most prominent film events given for Hindi films in India. The awards were...

. He also expressed his interest in directing the prequel to "A Wednesday."

Early life and education

Born and brought up in Kolkata

Kolkata

Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

, Neeraj Pandey moved to New Delhi, where he graduated in English.

Career

He started his career working with Delhi-based 'Legacy Entertainment', a company started by the Dalmia

Dalmia

The Dalmia Group of Companies came into existence in India in the early 1930s as the Dalmia-Jain Group. Founded by the late Ramkrishna Dalmia, with the assistance of his younger brother Jaidayal Dalmia and his son-in-law Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain, the group’s activities included banks and insurance...

 group to make television programs where he learnt his film basics.

In 2000, he moved to Mumbai, here a friend got a grant to produce a documentary, and offered him he project. Soon we was making making documentaries and ad films. Thereafter, he formed a production company, 'Quarter Inch Productions', along with a colleague Sheetal Bhatia, which made to make television programmes, ad films and documentaries. After which they formed, Friday Film Works, which was the original producer of his debut film, A Wednesday. Film's script was inspired by the 11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings

11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings

The 11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings were a series of seven bomb blasts that took place over a period of 11 minutes on the Suburban Railway in Mumbai, the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the nation's financial capital. The bombs were set off in pressure cookers on trains...

, and a lot of information in the film, was taken from the incidents that followed the bombings. After Wednesday, he story and screenplay of, Marega Salaa (2009).

Currently, his involved in two projects, one Special Chabbis for Ekta Kapoor

Ekta Kapoor

Ekta Jeetendra Kapoor is an Indian TV and film producer. She is the Creative Director and Joint Managing Director of Balaji Telefilms, her production company.-Biography:...

's Balaji Telefilms

Balaji Telefilms

Balaji Telefilms is a production house based in Mumbai, India, and is promoted by Ekta Kapoor, Shobha Kapoor, Jeetendra and Tushar Kapoor.-History:...

 is under production. It was based on a high profile heist

Heist

A heist is a term used to describe a robbery from an institution such as a bank or a museum, or any robbery in which there is a large haul of loot.Heist in fiction may refer to:*Heist , directed by David Mamet...

, at the Opera House

Royal Opera House (Mumbai)

Royal Opera House, also known as Opera House in Mumbai , is India's only surviving opera house. The name ‘Royal’ got prefixed to ‘opera house’ as its foundation stone was laid during the British Raj in 1909, and King George V inaugurated the building in 1911 while the building was still under...

 branch of 'Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri' jewellery store in Mumbai, when on March 19, 1987, 26 men posing as income tax officials raided the shop and walked away with jewellery worth lakhs. , with Ajay Devgn. Also in line is the prequel to A Wednesday, which is being directed by assistant, starring Jimmy Shergill

Jimmy Shergill

Jasjit Singh Gill , popularly known as Jimmy Shergill , is an Indian actor.-Early life:Shergill was born in a Jatt Sikh family in Gorakhpur, India and studied there till 5th Grade in St. Paul's School. Then, his family shifted to Patiala...

.

Awards

• National Film Award
  • 2008
    56th National Film Awards
    The 56th National Film Awards is presented to the best of Indian Cinema released during the year 2008.-Feature Films:Films made in any Indian language shot on 16 mm, 35 mm or in a wider gauge or digital format but released on a film format or video/digital but certified by the Central Board of Film...
    
    : Best First Film of a Director
    Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director
    The Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director is a National Film Award - Golden Lotus Award, given to a feature film director's first film.The National Film Award - Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director winners:...
    
    :A Wednesday
• Star Screen Award
  • 2009
    • Best Director: A Wednesday
    • Best Story
      Star Screen Award for Best Story
      The winners of the Star Screen Awards for Best Story are listed below:-1990s:*1994 Krantiveer - K.K. Singh*1995 Param Vir Chakra - Ashok Kaul*1996 Maachis - Gulzar*1997 Virasat - Kamal Haasan*1998 Zakhm - Mahesh Bhatt...
      
      :A Wednesday
• IIFA Awards
  • 2009
    • Best Screenplay: A Wednesday
    • Best Story: A Wednesday

External links

• Neeraj Pandey at Bollywood Hungama
  Bollywood Hungama
  Bollywood Hungama is a leading Bollywood entertainment website, owned by hungama.com....