Tinnu Anand Wiki, Age, Wife, Children, Family, Biography, & More

Tinnu Anand is an Indian actor, producer, writer, and director with a majority of his works in Bollywood. Some of the popular films directed by him are Kaalia (1981), Shahenshah (1988), and Major Saab (1998). His characters in the films Agneepath (1990), Bombay (1994), and Lajja (2001) are also well-liked by the audience.

Wiki/Biography

Virender Raj Anand, better known as Tinnu Anand, was born on Friday, 12 October 1945 (age 78; as of 2023) in Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India (now Mumbai, Maharashtra, India). His zodiac sign is Libra.

He completed his school education at Mayo College, in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India. He pursued an arts degree at St Xavier’s College in Mumbai but did not complete it. His father had an idea of opening a hotel in Chennai and so, he instructed Tinnu Anand to pursue a diploma in catering at an institute in Dadar, Mumbai. He later dropped his studies to pursue a career in filmmaking.

Family

Tinnu Anand is from a Maharashtrian Hindu family.

Parents & Siblings

Tinnu Anand’s father Inder Raj Anand, was an established film dialogue and screenwriter in Bollywood. He wrote for the leading names in Bollywood such as Raj Kapoor and V. Shantaram.

His younger brother, Bittu Anand, produced many films such as Duniya Meri Jeb Mein (1979), Yeh Ishq Nahin Aasaan (1984), and Shahenshah (1988). He left the film industry and has a garment business.

Wife & Children

Tinnu Anand is married to Shahnaz Vahanvaty, an actor and costume designer.

She acted in many films such as Saat Hindustani (1969), Hum Farishte Nahin (1988), Pathar Ke Insan (1990), and Deewana (1992). They have two daughters, Isha and Diksha. Isha reportedly is an activist on social issues and Diksha Anand is a fashion designer, who worked in films such as No Entry (2005) and Tere Bin Laden (2010).

Other Relatives

Tinnu Anand’s father-in-law, Agha was a film actor, known for his humorous roles in films such as Rangila Mazdoor (1938) and Muqabala (1942). He passed away on 30 April 1992 due to a heart attack.

His nephew, Siddharth Anand, is a film director, who is known for films such as Bang Bang! (2014), War (2019), and Pathan (2023).

Tinnu Anand’s cousin and Inder Raj Anand’s nephew, Mukul S Anand was a film director who made films such as Aitbaar (1985), Khuda Gawah (1992), and Trimurti (1995).

His brother-in-law Jalal Agha was an actor and director who acted in films such as Saat Hindustani (1969), Julie (1975), and Thodi Si Bewafai (1980).

Career

Assistant Director

Tinnu Anand joined Satyajit Ray as his assistant director. He assisted Satyajit Ray in the making of the films Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne (1969), Aranyer Din Ratri (1970), Pratidwandi (1970), Seemabaddha (1971), and Ashani Sanket (1973).

Director

Tinnu Anand’s debut film as an independent director was Duniya Meri Jeb Mein (1979). The film was produced by his brother Bittu Anand and Naresh Malhotra. The film had Shashi Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Neetu Anand, and Ranjeet in the lead roles and it was a commercially successful film.

His next film Kaalia (1981) was a huge success at the box office and signified Amitabh Bachchan in the image of an angry young man. The next film, Yeh Ishq Nahin Aasan (1984) had Rishi Kapoor and Padmini Kolhapure in the lead roles but it was not as successful as his previous film.

The action thriller film, Shahenshah (1988) with Amitabh Bachchan and Meenakshi Seshadri in the lead roles, was a commercial blockbuster. His father, Inder Raj Anand, wrote the screenplay, but he passed away before the film was released. Then came the film Main Azad Hoon (1989), Jeena Teri Gali Mein (1991), and Major Saab (1998). He faced multiple issues during the making of the film Major Saab and his next film Ek Hindustani (2003) is unreleased.

Actor

Tinnu Anand’s debut as an actor was in the classic silent film Pushpak (1987) in which he played the role of an assassin. His character was liked by the audience.

He next acted in Mani Ratnam’s Nayakan (1987) in Tamil. His character Nathu in Mukul Anand’s directorial Agneepath (1990) was also well noted by the audience.

He acted in supporting roles in many commercially successful films such as Krantiveer (1994), Kaalapani (1994), Bombay (1995), and Trimurti (1995). His character, Yeda, in the film Ek Phool Teen Kante (1997), was liked by the audience.

His character, Purushotam, in the film Lajja, is another role liked by the audience. Some of the other films he acted in are the Dabaang film series 1 and 2 released in 2010 and 2012, respectively, Hasee Toh Phasee (2014), Janhit Mein Jaari (2022), and Sita Ramam (2022). He was signed up for the film, Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire, along with the lead actors Prabhas and Prithviraj Sukumaran.

Facts/Trivia

• Tinnu Anand’s father Inder Raj Anand was not in favour of his sons building their careers in the film industry. Soon his father realized that Tinnu was adamant about pursuing filmmaking as his career. His father suggested learning the craft from one of his three friends – Raj Kapoor, Federico Fellini, or Satyajit Ray. He chose Satyajit Ray as Raj Kapoor was very close to his family, and joining Fellini required him to learn the Italian language.

• He considers Satyajit Ray his guru and mentor.

  Tinnu Anand with Satyajit Ray

• He did almost 70 advertising films before his first directorial film.

• He considers Veeru Devgan, an action choreographer, whose advice to unlearn and learn the craft helped him in his filmmaking.

• Tinnu Anand was cast in Khwaja Ahmad Abbas’s film Saat Hindustani (1969) when he got the opportunity to join as assistant director with Satyajit Ray. He chose film direction and thus, Amitabh Bachchan got his debut role in the film.

• During the shoot of the film Kaalia, there occurred a heated argument with Amitabh Bachchan regarding a dialogue. Tinnu Anand predicted the dialogue would be well-accepted by the audience and if not, he would quit the film industry. The director was proved right after the film’s release.