MUMBAI: Televison and film Director Anant Balani is no more. He passed away on Thursday evening due to a massive cardiac arrest.
Well known for his works on televison like Mouthful Of Sky and Kabhi Kabhi, Balani after a stint with television had moved to cinema.
According to sources, the director was returning home from a shooting schedule at Mumbai's Rajkamal Studios, when he complained of extreme exhaustion and fatigue. He was taken to Nanavati Hospital, where he later died of a massive cardiac arrest.
Currently, he was working on Pritish Nandy Communications production Chameli starring Kareena Kapoor and Rahul Bose.
His first tryst with cinema was in 1989Gawahi (1989), with Zeenat Aman, Ashutosh Gowariker, Shekhar Kapur and Ranjeeta- was a dud at the box-office. Ditto for his next Patthar Ke Phool (1991), starring Raveena Tandon and Salman Khan. But he had resurfaced with Joggers' Park (Victor Banerjee, Perizaad Zorabian) and Mumbai Matinee (Rahul Bose, Perizaad Zorabian). The former one was for Mukta Arts, while the latter was for PNC Communications. Both the flicks are slated to release in September. His Ek Din (Rahul Bose, Nandita Das) is due for release by the end of the year.
Joggers' Park also stars Hiten Tejwani aka Karan of Kyunki... as Perizaad's rejected boyfriend. While Joggers Park deals with the story of a young girl who falls in love with a man more than double her age and dumps her boyfriend, Mumbai Matinee is an equally bold subject revolving around a 32-year old guy desperate to lose his virginity.
It remains to be seen whether PNC Communications goes ahead on Chameli with a new director.