This generation of the educated middle class is the future of our country. That is what Swades highlights. We want to show that the educated people from our country can bring about change, if they want to. If you have achieved everything in life and believe in genuine patriotism, then you should not just say we are Indians and we're Bharatiya. Instead, you should help the illiterate. You must work for people deprived of technology. If every literate person does this, things will change in our country. If this number increases, India will prosper. And that is the patriotism of our time!

We are not showing brain-drain in a positive or negative light. We are showing the journey of a man in the film. If people have made it big abroad and if they want to do something for their country, they must come back and help others. We are not saying it's bad to go abroad. We are saying that if you come back to India, you should do something good for our country in return.

Mohan Bhargava is a complex character. He has strong beliefs, and therefore he is the hero of the film. He leaves everything -- including his high position in US -- and returns to India. How he overcomes his internal struggle and finds the answer of life is the story of the film.

Design: Uday Kuckian | Interviews: Lata Khubchandani, Syed Firdaus Ashraf

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