He gained international recognition with the 1994 Bollywood film "Bandit Queen", based on Mala Sen's biography of infamous Indian bandit and politician Phoolan Devi, which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi and Filmfare Critics Awards for Best Movie and Best Direction for that year. It was premiered in the Directors Fortnight section of the 1994 Cannes Film Festival and was screened at the Edinburgh Film Festival.