A teenaged girl feels her lonely single mother should get hitched again — that’s Saayoni Ghosh and Sreelekha Mitra in Sudeshna Roy-Abhijit Guha’s Mayer Biye (produced by Eskay Movies in association with Sony Aath), which hit screens this Friday. “We have realised that the film market has changed, the audience has got smarter. Instead of watching mindless masala films, people are more interested in content. Mayer Biye is our first step towards experimental cinema. In future we plan to do more such films,” said Himanshu Dhanuka of Eskay Movies. t2 caught up with the screen mom-daughter duo for a fun chat...

Being single in the city means...

Sreelekha: Being liberated. I’m not answerable to anyone and that’s such a kickass feeling. I’m my master. And that’s why I don’t want to get into a relationship anytime soon. Every relationship demands compromise and being single means there’s no room for compromise. But I’m not indisciplined. Being a Virgo, I’m very meticulous and fairly disciplined too.

Saayoni: Freedom... there’s nothing to lose!

If you were to marry an actor, you would choose...

Sreelekha: Tolly toh completely cancel! I would go for an amalgamation of Hugh Grant, Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Aamir Khan. I don’t want to concentrate on one man only!

Saayoni: Salman Khan. Does one need a reason?

Marrying a sexy man is a bad/good idea because...

Sreelekha: It’s a good idea, other women should fantasise about him. I’m not an insecure person. So my man should be sexy, but he should not be conscious of it and not make an effort to look sexy. He should also be intellectual, clean-shaven, dress well and smell good.

Saayoni: Sexy, not sexy... it’s all the same. I would rather marry a simple guy who’s not great looks-wise but is a great human being.

One thing you’d do if your man eyes other women in front of you...

Sreelekha: I would eye other men and also watch the woman he is eyeing. I love watching women though I’m straight.

Saayoni: I’ll make my disgust very evident!

One trick that never fails a woman to catch a man’s eye...

Sreelekha: I have never made a conscious effort to attract a man. Just be yourself and that always works. I like men who do not fall for tricks and are difficult to achieve.

Saayoni: The more nonchalant and indifferent you are to men, the more they desire you.

If you two as Aparna and Puja — the mother and daughter in Mayer Biye — fall for the same guy, what would you do?

Sreelekha: I would toss a coin. Maybe I would discuss and sort things out with my daughter.

Saayoni: I’d make sure who he has fallen for and take steps accordingly.

Are you okay with an open marriage?

Sreelekha: It’s a tricky question since I’m not married now. I would love my man to be honest. But cheating is a strict no-no. I don’t know what I would do if he tells me about his flings or one-night stands. I am 40 now and I have evolved as a person. But I don’t know really....

Saayoni: I’m okay with open relationships but not an open marriage because that’s stupid. Open relationships, to me, make you certain of the person you wanna settle down with finally, although nothing in life is final... even then. Hence it’s serious stuff. Once decided, one should take responsibility of the marriage and not take it casually.

What are the qualities in a man that make him husband material?

Sreelekha: He should be settled in life, both emotionally and financially. He should have his space and give me space. He should definitely be good-looking, sexy, have a sense of humour and love animals because I’m planning to get a dog soon. Above all, he should love my daughter. He should watch good films.

Saayoni: My man is one who puts more into the world than he takes from it.