Nearly a decade ago, Anurag Kashyap took to Instagram and shared pictures with Shubhra Shetty, sparking dating rumours that quickly became a subject of public curiosity. Now, years into their relationship, the filmmaker and Shubhra have spoken together for the first time in an interview with Janice Sequeira, opening up about their relationship, the scrutiny they have faced and whether marriage is on the cards for them.

‘I’m very happy to be with her’

When asked if he plans to marry for the third time, Anurag, referring to Shubhra, said, “She doesn’t believe in it.” Asked if he would want to get married again, he replied, “I’m very happy to be with her. I want to be with her. So, whatever that takes.” Elaborating on what he meant, Anurag said, “There’s a lot in life. What is an old man’s insecurity? I want to be healthy enough to outlive the people I love. Because if it doesn’t happen, then what can happen after that? The ways of the world. So, I think about it a lot. But my thing is, as long as we have found what we have found now, I’m happy with anything. I don’t want to lose this.”

Shubhra then recalled one of their early experiences together, describing a moment that revealed how deeply their relationship had affected Anurag. She said, “We were in our honeymoon phase, really in love, and I said, ‘being in love is on my bucket list, and I can happily die now.’ I just said it casually. But he got really serious and teared up. He paused and thought about it, and then he said, ‘before this, I was never scared if I got into a car accident. I just didn’t care about anything. I feel like, for the first time in my life, I’ve found something worth living for, so I actually don’t want to die.’ And I thought that was the sweetest way to look at it.” As Shubhra recounted the memory during the interview, Anurag became visibly emotional and teared up.

Anurag Kashyap with Shubhra Shetty

‘I was trying so hard to push it away’

The couple also spoke candidly about the age difference between them. Shubhra shared she is in her 30s, and Anurag is 53. The filmmaker said they have experienced their share of age shaming over the years, although he feels the situation has changed with time.

“We’ve had our share of troubles. We’ve had our moments. We have been self-conscious,” he said. Shubhra immediately corrected him, saying, “You have been more conscious.” Agreeing with her, Anurag said, “I’ve been more conscious. I was more conscious. And not just more conscious, at one point, I became so conscious, I was trying so hard to push it away. There was a point because her face doesn’t show her age. She still looks the same. She doesn’t look her age. So the thing is, the more I grew older and she kept looking the same, that’s when I became slightly conscious.”

Shubhra, however, explained that Anurag had always wanted her to experience life on her own terms rather than feel defined by their relationship. She said, “He can be sure in life because he’s gone through everything. He knows what love isn’t, and so he can be sure that this is love. But I can’t, because I was in my 20s, and that’s when you’re figuring yourself out. So he was adamant that I go out, and if I have to find my way back to him, I will.”

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Speaking about their age difference, Anurag added with a touch of humour, “She has been unapologetic from the very beginning, her parents are also like that. Her mother is only seven or eight years older than me, but she’s also a very good friend of mine.”

About Anurag Kashyap and Shubhra Shetty

Shubhra Shetty previously worked as an assistant director at Anurag’s production company, Phantom Films. The two have been together for nearly a decade, and their relationship attracted considerable attention when it first became public, particularly because of their age difference.

Anurag Kashyap previous marriages

Before his relationship with Shubhra, Anurag was married to editor Aarti Bajaj. The couple ended their six-year marriage in 2009 and share a daughter, Aaliyah Kashyap. Anurag later began dating actor Kalki Koechlin, whom he married in 2011. He also introduced Kalki to Bollywood with his critically acclaimed romantic musical Dev D. The couple divorced after four years of marriage.

Anurag most recently directed Bandar, starring Bobby Deol.