# Nitesh Tiwari

Nitesh Tiwari (born 22 May 1973) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and lyricist known for his works in Bollywood. He debuted as a co-director in Chillar Party (2011) which won the National Film Award for Best Children's Film. He also directed the supernatural political drama Bhoothnath Returns (2014).
Tiwari scripted and directed Dangal (2016), which was screened at the Beijing International Film Festival and the second BRICS festival in 2017. The film is the highest-grossing Indian film and ranks among the highest-grossing non-English films of all time earning over ₹2,000 crore (US$230 million) including ₹1,200 crore in China, where it has emerged as one of the top 20 highest-grossers of all time. Tiwari won the Award for Best Director at the 62nd Filmfare Awards and the Telstra People's Choice Award at the 2017 Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. He followed up with the critically acclaimed comedy-drama film Chhichhore (2019).
He co-founded Earthsky Pictures, producing ad films and the docu-series Break Point based on Indian tennis legends Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes.

## Early life

Tiwari was born in Madhya Pradesh to B. D. Tiwari. He has a brother and a sister. He graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay in 1996 with a bachelor's degree in Metallurgy and Material Science engineering. He worked as a creative director at Leo Burnett before entering Bollywood. Tiwari grew up in the small town of Ganj Basoda, attending Bharat Mata Convent School until class 8th. He performed in a school play titled "Tapori-Mughal-e-Azam".

## Personal life

Tiwari is married to Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari, a former colleague and creative director at Leo Burnett who is also a film director, producer, and writer. He is a father to twins, a boy and a girl.

## Filmography

| Year | Film | Director | Producer | Dialogue | Screenplay | Story | Notes |
| 2011 | Chillar Party | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | National Film Award for Best Children's Film National Film Award for Best Screenplay |
| 2014 | Bhoothnath Returns | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2014 | Kill Dil | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2016 | Nil Battey Sannata | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2016 | Dangal | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Telstra People's Choice Award Filmfare Award for Best Director |
| 2017 | Bareilly Ki Barfi | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2019 | Chhichhore | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi |
| 2020 | Ghar Ki Murgi | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | |
| 2021 | Ankahi Kahaniya | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2021 | Break Point | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | |
| 2023 | Tarla | No | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 2023 | Bawaal | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
| 2023 | Tumse Na Ho Payega | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2026 | Ramayana: Part 1 | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2027 | Ramayana: Part 2 | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Result |
| 2011 | National Film Award for Best Children's Film | Chillar Party | Won |
| 2011 | National Film Award for Best Screenplay | Chillar Party | Won |
| 2015 | Filmfare Award for Best Dialogue | Bhoothnath Returns | Nominated |
| 2017 | Filmfare Award for Best Director | Dangal | Won |
| 2018 | Filmfare Award for Best Dialogue | Bareilly Ki Barfi | Nominated |
| 2020 | Filmfare Award for Best Dialogue | Chhichhore | Nominated |
| 2020 | Filmfare Award for Best Story | Chhichhore | Nominated |
| 2020 | Filmfare Award for Best Director | Chhichhore | Nominated |
| 2020 | IIFA Award for Best Story | Chhichhore | Nominated |
| 2020 | National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi | Chhichhore | Won |