You’ve produced small, independent films like Mixed Doubles and Bheja Fry. How did it all start?
The whole thing started as a child-like arrogance. I was a founder of a film society in Mumbai. We used to screen all kinds of classical European, neo-realism movies for people on Sundays. Gradually, I got on the jury of film festivals. I was impressed by the whole thing and resolved to produce a film myself. Though I didn’t have a formal background in cinema, my film society activity got me access to many prominent people in the film industry. Santosh Sivan and I collaborated on Navrasa, a Tamil film that marked my first film as a producer. It didn’t make money. But it never made any difference to my ambition.
I met Rajat Kapoor at the Locarno Film Festival where his film Raghu Romeo was being shown. Rajat had the script of Mixed Doubles which no one was willing to produce. I agreed to produce it in a budget of Rs 55 lakh. You could say I invested in the jockey and not the horse. I am not a film scholar who can just read a script and know it’s a winner. But I liked the man — his sensibility and his approach to work – and invested in him. The film was small but we got noticed.

How difficult has it been to stick to your convictions?
It has been very difficult. I generated funds for these movies from my celebrity management company. Whatever commissions I earned, I would put into making films. My films are not of very high budget because I have no financial partner; nor do I borrow money from any bank or financial institution.
The biggest hurdle is to be heard. I don’t mind being released and rejected but often the movie doesn’t even get there. Reaching out to the audience and inviting the footfalls into the multiplexes or in the cinema hall is a Herculean task because the cost of media is exorbitant. Unfortunately, we in India don’t have a separate space for filmmakers who cannot afford such exorbitant marketing and advertising costs. Unlike London’s British Film institute, or America’s Museum of Modern Art, we don’t have avenues in our country to showcase these films to the audience.

Did the success of Bheja Fry come as a surprise?
When Rajat’s assistant Sagar Ballary came up with the idea of making Bheja Fry, I was very scared. I had put my entire life’s saving and mortgaged my office to make Mixed Doubles. But I thought there was something to Sagar’s idea. We have the Yash Chopras and Karan Johars but there’s hardly anyone the other side of Bollywood’s polarised spectrum. I saw a good niche. I said while everyone is making films with Aamir, Abhishek, Saif, John and Shah Rukh, we will make a film with Ranvir Shorey, Vinay Pathak and Rajat Kapoor.
Imagine a scenario where many people are shouting together. In this melee, if one person is silent, maybe someone will observe him. I decided to try this approach. It worked. After Bheja Fry, Rajat has got a five-film deal with Pritish Nandy and Sagar has two films. Ranvir and Vinay are hot. All the technicians are in great demand. That to me is success.

Do you think such films will ever go beyond multiplexes?
Yes. Ta Ra Rum Pum didn’t do as well as Bheja Fry. Khosla Ka Ghosla did much better than many blockbusters. Because these movies succeeded in the multiplexes and in cities, they later did well in single-release halls too. The universe for such films is smaller, but within that space if you exploit the potential optimally, you still have a big market. That is what happened to Bheja Fry.

Don’t you want to produce a commercial blockbuster?
No. I don’t want to make a film with stars. I’m not saying it’s bad to make a big film. But there are so many good filmmakers who are not known. I want to produce films made in a truly independent spirit with out-of-the-box thinking. We launched Handmade Films to make movies that have a boutique approach and are made with a lot of passion. From now, we want to be associated only with debutante directors.

What are you producing next?
I am producing debutante Jaydeep Varma’s film Hulla. But I’m not just restricting myself to producing films. I’m also acquiring distribution rights for award-winning foreign movies and bringing them to India. After March of the Penguins, we are bringing several others.