Thinking Big

Apart from your own,what films do you like to watch?
Mani Ratnam is my god. Apart from him the Indian filmmaker whose work I love is Vijay Anand. Internationally,there are the usual great directors such as Akira Kurosawa and James Cameron.

You seem to enjoy working with a huge cast as well.
Films with an ensemble cast are always fun to shoot. For Acid Factory we had such a wide variety of actors. From powerhouse performers like Danny Denzongpa and Irrfan Khan to the extremely talented younger lot of Fardeen Khan,Dino Morea,Dia Mirza and Aftab Shivadasani. Luckily for me,no one had any issues with each other and there was energy on the sets.

You don’t believe in the mantra that a star can sell a film?
I believe in having a good script more than having a star. When my script requires it I would definitely approach a commercially viable star. Right now I’m happy with my cast that fits in the script perfectly.

What’s happening with your other film Alibaug?
Alibaug is on a break now. I want to concentrate on a good release for Acid Factory then I will deal with Alibaug.

And there is Pankkh which has met with so much controversy about the subject. Will we ever get to see that film on the big screen or has it been shelved?
I haven’t made the film to be a commercial success. It has a niche audience and I’m sure they will appreciate it. The film is about a young boy who was made to dress up as a girl for films. He grows up and has a lot of difficulty being accepted as a hero. The film is ready and I’m just waiting for the distributors,Eros,to fix a date.

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