Rajkumar Hirani

My natural bend is to get attracted towards things that have been an influence in my life.

There's a big time influence Hrishikesh Mukherjee has always had on my work. I can watch 'Anand,' 'Golmaal' or 'Chupke Chupke' as many times as possible. I just really admire his kind of cinema.

Dad had a huge influence on me. I really look up to him for his brave acts. He was an outspoken man. For him, if it was the right thing, he would stand up for the smallest guy around him.

Taking nuances from real life will help you make scenes that have never been done before. It keeps the story interesting.

I can lock myself for months in the editing suite with no noise or distractions. It's fascinating to see the film taking shape.

I've often been asked why my shot-taking is not stylish, why I don't think about visual statements. The truth is, style is irrelevant. I never think of the shot as much as I think of the characters and what they are saying and doing.

I have the highest respect for the concept of 'Advait' - the oneness of all humans - that is central to Indian culture, thought, and religion.

The pressure is always there to make good films, but that is more from your mindset, either you have it or you don't have it.

At the end of the day, you don't remember 'Mother India' or 'Pyaasa' for the business it did, you remember them because they had a good story to tell.

I grew up in Nagpur, and I first started enjoying the author Harishankar Parsai. He wrote mostly satire, essays on the current situation and social issues. He wrote many books and I think he was my first influence.

Very honestly, I don't feel 'Munnabhai' is a comedy film. I seriously feel it is a very emotional film.

I have been in advertising and I know my craft well, but ultimately in cinema every scene has to matter, and that has to do with the writing.