Unfortunately, all my plans with Mr. Bachchan went haywire because of his illness. Now I have his dates for "Sholay". But that's been delayed for various reasons. We used those dates for "Nishabd".

See, it isn't a question of suddenly trying to prove I can do an intense love story. It was an idea I was sleeping with for a long time. People seem to think I'm doing an adaptation of "Lolita", which is about a middle-aged man's obsession with a 14-year-old girl.

What fascinates me is how would it seem to place a man of Mr. Bachchan's character, demeanour, grace and image in such a position? The relationship with a young girl will look even more effective. I feel emotions have nothing to do with age. What stops a man in that position of supreme success and respect from indulging in his feelings? Is it a sense of responsibility towards society and family? I wanted to look beyond those responsibilities.

I want to film a love story between a man of Mr. Bachchan's age and a very young girl, in an intense stylised way in a completely new narrative language. I want to create a language of love-expression that's never been tried before.

For all my cynical talk, I feel I portray feelings and emotions in a way that's entirely mine. In "Nishabd" I'm basically interested in capturing a conflict within a man between his feelings and his responsibilities. The girl is only a device to trigger off that conflict.

Her name is Jiya Khan. And please don't ask a stupid question like where did I find her. I didn't go on a girl hunt or something. I keep collecting pictures of actors and actresses who come to meet me. And then a particular face comes back to me when I'm scripting a character. Jiya is right for this part.

To my knowledge she has no experience in modelling or acting. I had met her a couple of years back. In fact, I was planning to cast her in a later production. Then "Nishabd" came along.

No love story can be complete without an undercurrent of sexuality. Because of the nature of the subject and its requirements, I'm excited about capturing Mr. Bachchan's expressions as never seen before.

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