Anurag Kashyap is not known to mince words and honestly, he doesn’t need to. In an interview with The Hindustan Times, Kashyap spoke about the country’s suppressive censorship laws and how despite all that, he continues to break barriers.

The renowned director is part of a band of four – including Zoya Akhtar, Karan Johar and Dibakar Banerjee – who have released four short films under the umbrella of Lust Stories. In his short film, he directs Radhika Apte who plays the character of a college professor who enters into an affair with her student.

This, of course, is not Kashyap’s first time at the rodeo. He’s set the bar, pushed it, broken it and given us raw, honest and gritty stories every single time. Why, in Mukkabaz itself, he begins the movie with a scene showing ‘gau rakshaks’ executing innocent Muslim men. He tells HT that obstacles exist only in one’s head and that he doesn’t let the country’s frequently criticised censorship laws affect his spirit.

“I fight till the end,” he told the paper. “When I have facts in my hand, they also know I won’t give in. I won’t back out.”

“Censorship is a strong political tool in a country like India,” he added. In his interview with Rohan Naahar, the film director also opines that “online streaming is going to change everything” and that he will keep making cinema even if certain films are more suitable for streaming.

This is the director’s first collaboration with Netflix, one which will continue when his and Vikramaditya Motwane’s adaptation of Sacred Games is released on the streaming app. “Watch it, watch it,” he told HT, “it’s turned out good. I did the Nawaz part and Vikramaditya did all the Saif scenes. That’s how we work.”

(Picture credits: Anurag Kashyap shot by Rohit Gupta)