Acting career

Tiwari started his career in 2008 by acting in television commercials for brands like Citibank, Jet Airways, Tanishq, Tata ACE and DISH TV.^[9][10] He then transitioned into theatre in Mumbai, working in plays like Dreams of Taleem directed by Sunil Shanbag and Rage Theatre's One On One (2010).^[6][11][12]

Tiwari made his acting debut in Bollywood by playing small roles in several films including Slumdog Millionaire (2008), The President Is Coming (2009), Udaan (2010) and Kites (2010).^[2][13] He then appeared in supporting roles in the ensemble romantic comedy-drama Aisha (2010) directed by Rajshree Ojha and Go Goa Gone (2013), a zombie action comedy film directed by Raj and D.K.^[2] He has also appeared in the Hollywood film Fair Game (2010), which starred Naomi Watts and was an official entry at the Cannes Film Festival.^[2][9]

Directing career

Tiwari worked as assistant director for Anurag Basu's film Barfi! (2012)^[11] He has also worked as assistant co-ordinator and director with Cogito TV and Cyclops Films and Video.^[6]

Tiwari made his directorial debut with the 2018 film Love Per Square Foot.^[14] Produced by Ronnie Screwvala, under his newly established banner RSVP Movies; the film stars Vicky Kaushal and Angira Dhar in the lead roles.^[15] Tiwari who wrote the script in 2010, along with Sumeet Vyas, was originally set to make into a dark film but later decided to turn it into a romantic comedy.^[16] Originally scheduled for a theatrical release, Anand Tiwari eventually sent the film's final cut to the executives of Netflix India, who approved to release the film online. Thus it became the first Indian film to be released directly on a streaming platform.^[17] The film was screened at the Beijing International Film Festival, held in China in April 2019.^[18]

In 2020, Tiwari created, produced and directed the web series Bandish Bandits along with Amritpal Singh Bindra.^[19] The series feature debutants Ritwik Bhowmik as Radhe Rathod, a Hindustani Classical musician and Shreya Chaudhary as Tamanna Sharma, a pop singer, who hail from different worlds of music. Exploring the debate of music being a discipline versus a means of liberation.^[20] Bandish Bandits released on 4 August 2020, through Amazon Prime Video. It received positive response from critics and audiences, praising the performances of the cast, writing and direction, songs and background score.^[21] It was listed by critics as one of the best Indian television shows of 2020.^[22] The series was nominated for seven Filmfare OTT Awards including Best Original Story for Tiwari.^[5]

Tiwari is also filming for his second collaboration with Kaushal on an yet untitled film featuring Tripti Dimri which he will also produce.^[23]

As actor

As director

Television