Quotes

There aren't that many movies that strike me on a personal level that I would say, "Oh, my God, this would be great to see," because women usually play secondary characters. There's nobody out there saying, "This is where we are."

I think it's slightly naive for me to think that films make a difference. But what it can do is start a dialog and provoke discussion.

I would prefer to be known as a storyteller. I don't set out to provoke reactions. I don't even feel vindicated [by Water's success] but the irony does not escape me. It is like my father used to say: the two things you could never predict were the day of your death and the success of a movie.

[on her film 'Heaven on Earth'] There's a Jekyll and Hyde side to this story. The abuser in this case isn't a monodimensional villain. He's under a great deal of stress to live up to his role as the family patriarch, and to take care of everyone.I had no interest in simply pointing a finger at men and saying it's all your fault! Things are far more complicated than that. There are cultural implications and family dynamics. Sometimes just a plain lack of personal privacy can set a cycle of violence in motion because couples don't have the space to talk through their problems.

There are two things that matter a lot to East Indians in the diaspora: cricket and Bollywood. We're investing money in the community, saying 'We understand this is what makes you happy'. Because of it's position as a superpower, everything India does is now taken seriously, including a cinema that was derided ten years ago.

All art is political, it's not personal. Somehow it reflects on the politics of our time. I don't see myself as carrying a placard with a message in my films. What motivates me are the stories. But those stories are usually issue-oriented. It has to be something I'm passionate about, because making a film too much time and energy.

The first time I made magic was a moment when we were shooting 'Water'. It's where the little girl gives her 'ladoo', a sugary sweet, to the older woman and she watches her eat it. It was the expression on the little girl's face of - in a way she wanted it so much. There was the greed of the child as well as the acceptance that maybe it was the right thing to do.