This year, the festival screened some of Mishra’s award-winning films. According to festival director, U Radhakrishnan, the club waited for two years to get hold of Mishra. Be it Chameli, Is Raat Ki Subah Nahin or Main Zinda Hoon, Mishra’s films have always been extolled for their avant-garde theme. He wasn’t too perturbed by his last Bollywood outing, Khoya Khoya Chand’s no-show at the box- office. He said, “I make films with lesser-knows actors. Somehow superstars don’t approve of me. KK Menon, Chitrangada Singh and Shiney Ahuja were unknown actors till HKA happened.”

But why did he make HKA? “I felt like making it. A good film is a planned accident,” was his witty rejoinder. He added, “This film stayed with me for three to four years before I could make it. It was not easy to cast newcomers.”

Mishra was brave enough to cast a reluctant and glamourous Kareena Kapoor in the role of a cheeky prostitute in Chameli, and still make it convincing. “It’s a fairytale movie and I couldn’t think of any other actress at that point,” he smiled.

The filmmaker is also astute in his understanding of the Bollywood culture. He stated, “I know many of my films failed because of the absence of sensationalism. In India it’s dangerous to mix religion with films.” Was there any political interference when HKA released? “I would love to say yes, but unfortunately I only had minor issues with the critics,” said Mishra.

He is also a keen blogger and regularly writes for a website called passionforcinema.com. “You can catch an altogether different Sudhir Mishra in that,” offered the director. From all his works, Mishra isn’t too happy with the outcome of Calcutta Mail. “It was a bad film,” said the candid filmmaker.

Films like Tingya (Marathi), Ek Nadir Galpo (Bengali) and Ore Kadal (Malayalam) will also be screened during the festival.