Remember the medicine shopowner Laltu Dutta and his homemaker wife Mitali from Ramdhanu? The fun couple — played by Shiboprosad Mukhopadhyay and Gargee Roychowdhury — are coming back in Shiboprosad and Nandita Roy’s next, Haami, three years and three films (Bela Sheshe, Praktan and Posto) later. The story of two middle-class parents struggling to admit their child to some of the best schools in town had made for a heartfelt watch in 2014. Without being preachy, Ramdhanu drove home the point that it is always about the best education and not the best school.

Haami, though featuring Laltu and Mitali, treads a different path. Dubbed as a children’s film, Haami focuses on the friendship between three kids — Broto Banerjee, Tiyasha Pal and Abhiraaj Karan — and their relationship with their parents.

With the shoot beginning this December, Haami — which also stars Neel Mukherjee, Churni Ganguly, Kharaj Mukherjee, Koneenica Banerjee, Aparajita Adhya and Devlina Kumar — is eyeing a May 2018 release.  A quick chat with Shiboprosad...

How did Haami happen?

We had this idea while making Ramdhanu. But then Bela Sheshe and Praktan and Posto happened. However, once we zeroed in on the three kids, we decided to go ahead with Haami. Some films need the perfect cast. It had happened with Bela Sheshe and Praktan. And now it has happened with this one. It was very important to get these three kids for this film. Broto is a wonder kid. He is unbelievable.

Ramdhanu was based on Suchitra Bhattacharya’s short story, Ramdhanu Rang. Does Haami have a literary source?
No. It is based on true events. The film tells an everyday story. It is happening around us.

Did you write the script this year?

Yes. But we had this idea during the Ramdhanu shoot itself. Then something happened which acted as the trigger for us.

Why bring Laltu and Mitali back from Ramdhanu?

Ramdhanu’s story resonated with the audience. Both Laltu and Mitali were interesting characters who became really popular. Their chemistry worked. Which is why we felt it would be great to bring them back. Both these names establish the Ramdhanu connect. Otherwise there is no similarity with Ramdhanu, which was a common man’s story. This is a children’s film with boroder katha.