He submitted his first short film Reflections for a filmmaking course at New York. Though he didn’t make it there because of visa issues, the silent film starring Malayalam superstar Mohanlal was noticed at film festivals and got him on board the filmmaking reality show Gateway. He went on to win the competition. “It’s an experience I’ll cherish for the rest of my life. I learnt a lot in those 12 weeks.” How did an industrialist end up becoming a filmmaker? “I belong to a family bred on movies, so cinema became a passion.” Reflecting reality on celluloid is what Bejoy loves about making movies. The director will undergo an intensive eight-week internship with Ashok Amritraj and Hyde Park Entertainment in Los Angeles before he gets to direct one of their productions. Bejoy, who is assisting his favourite director, Mani Ratnam on Lajjo, manages to find time to help his dad with their textile export business. He also loves to catch up on films by Majeed Majeedi, Hrishikesh Mukeherjee, Coen Brothers, Padmarajan and Jayaraj.