A t2 chat with Bheja Fry maker Sagar Ballary who was recently in town to help the students of Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute make a short film.

What brought you back to your alma mater?

A workshop film produced by SRFTI — an adaptation of A New Year’s Gift by Guy de Maupassant. The second-year direction students invited me to do a demo workshop film. We are making a 10-minute film about a couple arguing about their relationship. The screenplay and dialogues have been adapted with the help of the students. It is the story of one night. The girl comes to know whether the man truly loves her or not. Both are actors and are in an extramarital affair.

Is shooting a short film exciting anymore?

It’s extremely challenging. You have to narrate a complete idea in that much time… and doing it with students… they are always trying to understand what’s happening.

Is this the first time you shot in Calcutta?

I shot in Calcutta as a student [he studied direction and screenplay writing at SRFTI], but it’s been 10 years. It took me about four years to complete my diploma. That’s when I made many small films.

Last year you had said you were working on a bank heist comedy. Is it still on?

After Hum Tum Shabana, I felt that I must make films which are much more real than the masala genre of entertainment. That’s not my forte. I don’t want to force something that is not real and not coming from me. So, the next film that I am making is Bulbul Paradise. It is an urban comedy about mid-life crisis. We hope to have Irrfan Khan, Vinay Pathak and Mallika Sherawat. I don’t want to get into the whole gamut of big stars, songs and drama now. I have realised that with Bheja Fry, I had the possibility of making something niche. Sagar Ballary has to do comedy… that’s how the markets respond. We are supposed to start shooting in June-July. I’ll shoot the whole film in Bombay.

Does it bother you that you might get dubbed as a one-film-wonder?

I would say one-film-and-a-sequel-wonder. Bheja Fry 2 did decent business… Rs 20 crore. It was a good business franchise for my producer. I am here to make lots of films. I am 36 and have a lot of time…

Some of your fave comedies?

Half Ticket, Tropic Thunder, Death at a Funeral.