After initial setbacks, he achieved his breakthrough with the erotic thriller Murder (2004), and gained prominence with the musical romantic thriller Gangster: A Love Story (2006) and the ensemble urban drama Life in a... Metro (2007), the latter of which earned him the Filmfare Award for Best Screenplay, in addition to his first nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Director.

He next directed the much-delayed musical adventure comedy-drama Jagga Jasoos (2017), which earned mixed reviews and was commercially unsuccessful, and the Netflix black comedy crime film Ludo (2020), in which he also made his debut as a cinematographer.

[5] He directed television serials, trying genres ranging from daily soaps to thrillers such as Saturday Suspense and Ajeeb Dastaan, and horror (X-Zone).

[10] He made his directorial debut with the Balaji Motion Pictures-produced horror slasher film Kucch To Hai (2003), followed by the Vishesh Films-produced supernatural fantasy romantic thriller Saaya (2003).

[11][12] Basu achieved his breakthrough with the erotic thriller Murder (2004) starring Emraan Hashmi and Mallika Sherawat in lead roles.

It received mixed reviews from critics upon release, but emerged as a commercial success at the box-office, ranking as the eighth highest-grossing Hindi film of the year.

[13] The same year, he helmed the musical romance Tumsa Nahin Dekha: A Love Story, again starring Hashmi alongside Dia Mirza.

He gave instructions by dictaphone for camera angles and script changes, with Mahesh Bhatt and Mohit Suri completing the film while the director underwent chemotherapy.

[15] Basu's next directorial venture was the musical romantic thriller Gangster: A Love Story (2006), which starred debutante Kangana Ranaut alongside Hashmi and Shiney Ahuja in lead roles.

The film narrates the stories of nine people living in Mumbai and tackles themes such as extramarital affairs, sanctity of marriage, commitment phobia and love.

It received widespread critical acclaim upon release, with high praise for its novel concept, story, screenplay, dialogues, soundtrack and performances of the ensemble cast.

His next film was the romantic action thriller Kites (2010) starring Hrithik Roshan, deutante Bárbara Mori and Kangana Ranaut in lead roles.

It opened to widespread critical acclaim, with high praise for its direction, screenplay, cinematography, soundtrack, performances of the cast, and the portrayal of physically disabled people.

[25] After a 5-year directorial hiatus, he made his comeback with the musical adventure comedy-drama Jagga Jasoos (2017) starring Kapoor alongside Katrina Kaif.

The film received mixed reviews upon release, with praise for its innovative storytelling style, cinematography, soundtrack and cast performances, but criticism for its plot, runtime and pacing.

Starring an ensemble cast, the plot of the film interweaves the lives of four characters—a determined young woman, a cunning conman, a troubled teenager, and a righteous police officer—through a series of interconnected stories.