The Resident Non-Indians

This was the beginning of India By Choice,Kidwai’s latest documentary,which looks at the modern visitors who come visiting India but stay on,to make their lives here. In this 29-minute documentary,Kidwai has interviewed 13 such individuals and has tried to find out what motivated them to move to India. “I met and talked to scores of people,because to tell a story well,you need to understand it well first,” she explained,adding that it took her more than six months just to research the topic. Even after her extensive research,Kidwai has included only 13 individuals in her film. “I had to keep the film short and crisp,to get the message across,” says Kidwai,adding that she has interviewed writers William Dalrymple and Sam Miller,cycle-tour operator Jack Leenars,restaurateur Kim Jin Bum,BMW–India’s president Peter Kronschnable and Bagel Cafe’s Lalita de Goederen,among others.

A mother of two,Kidwai has previously worked on documentaries such as Purdah Hai Purdah — dealing with the relationship between women and the veil,and Jagrit Itni kin Chanchanna— based on the lives of three women from a heavily patriarchal society in Madhya Pradesh.

Ask about her entering into Bollywood,and she explains,“I do not make documentaries so that I will get a chance to enter mainstream cinema. For the subjects I choose,documentaries are the perfect way to present them,” she says,still adding that she hasn’t ruled out Bollywood entirely.