Maach Mishti & More cast members Neha Panda and Parno Mittra with director Mainak and Abir Chatterjee, who dropped by to wish the team

With Aamra, I was a rebel kid, speaking my mind, no holds barred. In Bedroom, I played it a bit safe. Its financial success at the box office gave me a career, for which I am truly thankful. But somehow, the Aamra me was still agitating to be let loose once again.

So, as a proud member of our ‘I’-centric world of ‘My’Space, ‘Face’book, ‘I’-pods, ‘I’-pads, ‘I’-phones and ‘I’-macs, I give you Maach Mishti & More... my ‘I’-film. A celebration of everything that has made me — Me: starting with my crazy, colourful family; my weird, wacked-out friends; and my quirky, mega-mixed up city of Calcutta.

But this is the age of instant messaging, instant download, instant coffee, instant orgasm and instant nirvana, why go through the long process of making a movie when I could have gone for a simpler, cheaper option by blogging or gabbing with friends over coffee? Especially given that when it comes to cinematic brilliance, I’m the poster boy for the guy you shouldn’t be talking to, considering that I’m impatient, lazy, shy, non-dictatorial, uncommunicative, don’t think on my feet — essentially everything a filmmaker shouldn’t be... well, given the painful shyness and social ineptness both online and off it — making movies where characters do all the talking for me, just seemed like the less painful option. Less painful for me, that is. Sorry Joy, Mojo and Tripod. And thanks for putting your money where my mouth is, and allowing me to take a dive in ‘Lake Me’.

Yes, I’m a Narcissist. No, it’s not my fault. You can blame: (A) The Net Generation that sings the anthem of self-obsession: “Mirror, mirror on my Facebook wall… who’s the fairest of us all”. Or, (B) My Bengali roots, as we are the most narcissistic race that demarcates mankind in two categories: Bengalis and “Non”-Bengalis. If pushed to further categories, we refer to our fellowmen with affectionate political incorrectness, as Marus/Meros, Panjus/Paiaas, Chine, Gujjus etc. But considering everyone else calls us “maach-mishti-eating Bongs”, I guess we can call it even?

As an American-born, Calcutta-half-bread, Non-Bengali-dating, Non-reliable Bong, I have always felt completely at home in this mixed-up city, where we Calcuttans are the first ones to celebrate all festivals, Gangnam style — Bengali New Year, Chinese New Year, Happy New year, Christmas, Chhath Puja, Diwali, Id.... All that’s left is Hanukkah, and we can apply for a seat at the UN.

In this mixed-up city of Maach and Mishti and so much “More”, were born my characters. Meet the Parents: Typical Bengali Ma-Baba, constantly stressed about their three sons. Meet the Brothers and the Others: Rahul, the oldest brother (Shauvik — the evergreen Hassan from The Bong Connection and my thermostat), an NRI investment banker, dumps the American dream for his own to open a Calcutta restaurant. But he struggles to adapt from his “I want it now! Don’t care how!” western ways to the ways of his city. His wife is Reena (Swastika Mukherjee — my friend and the most real actor I have come across, continues to surprise me as a person and a performer with every movie). Being a woman of today, she finds it tough adjusting to the role of a traditional Bangali bou in her mother-in-law’s kitchen.

Ronnie, the middle brother, (Parambrata Chattopadhyay — an old friend, a bad driver and one of the finest actors we have in town who never lets me down, especially when the microphone comes my way), is a nerdy office-goer whose life is strictly planned down to the last detail by his Marwari girlfriend, Swati (Rachita Chauhan — sweet, cigarette thief). Despite being a citizen of this new-age Calcutta of multi-speciality restaurants, multi-gyms and multiplexes, Ronnie turns out to be a not-so-skilled multi-tasker, as he discovers when he bumps into Ishani (Raima Sen — my nut-job sweet friend who overestimates her skills as a diplomat and underestimates her skills as an actress. Raima pretty much plays herself in the film), a spontaneous Bohemian, downright quirky college mate of Ronnie’s whose yoga-obsessed, Reiki-loving ways spin his head 360 degrees.

Raj, the youngest brother (Anubrato Basu — a stick of dynamite, and the only guy I know who could pass as my body-double) is a new-age Gen-Me prototype. A struggling actor by profession, Raj belongs to the world of email spam, music jam and “wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am”. He’s a commitment-phobic, serial dater-and-dumper by reputation. In a recycling-obsessed world, inundated with disposable plastic bags and disposable diapers, Raj takes it to the next level with disposable relationships. Until he meets Neha, a cool Marwari girl from Bombay (Neha Panda — the funkiest girl who’s added spunk and attitude to my films with her presence and styling). Neha’s biker-chick ways embody this unisex generation of unisex salons-clothing-watches-perfumes, the new-age trend of fluid gender identities.

Meet Dadu (Soumitra Chatterjee — an actor who makes me feel blessed, having touched history by working with him), an eccentric patriarch, motivated by the youth and determined to enjoy his last days as he sneaks behind his daughter-in-law’s back, to eat oily roadside food, ignoring all dietary restrictions. He makes a buddy out of Sunny (Parno Mittra — the natural actor who always looks under age and is a really good friend, allowing me to dress her up as me), an awkward tomboy, Facebook-addict teenager. Dadu is a friend, philosopher and guide to the young generation, who get lost and confused by life’s choices and hurdles, yet end up, somehow, finding their way again in this city of nuances, hilarious confusions, passion and honesty.

This is the world of Maach Mishti & More... Welcome to my world.