And as you mentioned earlier, you're doing this with a group of buddies. Tell us more about Jigri Dost Productions.
The name came from Mira. Dinaz Stafford, who's producing my film, is a director herself with films like Kisses On A Train and Still, The Children Are Here. The thing about Jigri Dost is that it's made up of several people who actually broke through with Salaam Bombay.
There's Nitin Desai, now the leading art director; Hasan Kutty, the continuity expert; Mulchand Dedhia, a superb gaffer; and Anil Tejani, director, resident guru, and, for Jigri Dost, a Consultant & Cheerleader, the man who told me I must make a film.
And all these people are tied together by Salaam Bombay. It was either their first film or the film they broke through with. And now we're all friends, making films together.
About that 1988 film, don't you think there's a tremendous chance you'll always be labelled as 'the woman who wrote Salaam Bombay?'
Yes, but it's a good label to have, isn't it?
That movie was a cultural phenomenon, and not just in terms of critics and commercial acclaim, but in terms of getting the issues the right kind of spotlight and raising awareness. I don't know if many people have actually watched Salaam Bombay, in the sense, at least not as many who have heard or read about the film.
It is an important film which had an impact, and I'm very proud of Salaam Bombay.
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