The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives. Makdee was more than Vishal Bhardwaj's debut feature- it was a promise, a sign of times to come. Times when the line between art and commerce would blur, when we would be treated with real stories, our stories, told in a manner that befits a country obsessed with stories; when literature would enrich our movies again; when cinema will be magic again. Twelve years on Bhardwaj has a come long way in keeping that promise. Getting him to reflect on his journey is an exciting prospect except he strongly dislikes being interviewed formally. Getting him to talk is a Vikram Betal act- ask him a question he really wants to answer and hope he begrudgingly will. An exercise worth it only because the answers are so very fascinating.

The Big Indian Picture - A magazine of cinema and culture The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives. Keep up on Facebook - www.facebook.com/TheBigIndianPicture Follow us on Twitter @TBIPicture (An optimised-audio for devices version of this interview is available here - http://youtu.be/Z4q6g9tkiaY)

The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives. Kalki Koechlin, 29, is an Indian actress of French descent who has portrayed a gamut of roles on screen. In life, she is seen as being one of the actors at the helm of what the media calls 'New Bollywood', or a Hindi cinema that is grittier and more real, and which deals with more challenging subjects than its mainstream counterpart, while still doing well financially. Also, Koechlin is married to a filmmaker who is seen as one of the driving forces behind this new kind of Indian movie— Anurag Kashyap. Here she speaks of her relationship with cinema and theatre, a medium she performed in before she took to the movies. She tells us what she makes of the Hindi film industry and how it has evolved in recent years and traces her unlikely and wondrous personal journey. - Pragya Tiwari, Editor-in-Chief, The Big Indian Picture Visit www.thebigindianpicture.com Host Wardrobe Courtesy - ZARA

The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives. Keep up on Facebook - www.facebook.com/TheBigIndianPicture Follow us on Twitter @TBIPicture

The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives. As soon as Ranbir Kapoor walks into the room, you know is a star. Not because he is saleable. Not because he is from the Hindi film industry's 'first family'. Not because he is likely to be mobbed on the streets. Not because he is all over the gossip magazines. Not even because he keeps his dark glasses on. You can tell Ranbir Kapoor is a star because he has that certain je ne sais quoi; that elusive glimmer we know oh-so well and yet can hardly sum up. But that is not all that makes him intriguing. Ranbir is a fourth-generation legatee of a family that has etched a place for itself in every era of the last 100 years of Indian cinema. The Kapoors are synonymous with style, panache, revelry, songs, success, glamour, brilliance and an unshakeable allegiance to the movies. Ranbir, named after his grandfather, is taking his own road to being a Kapoor. The Kapoor legacy for Ranbir is like the unseen backstory of a character that an actor uses merely as a reference in his process. The real journey of the character begins from the first frame of the film. Ranbir is also the quintessential representative of his generation. This month he turns 30. Already an accomplished actor, he has experimented with different genres. But he is not one to rest on his laurels, let alone his family's. Infact he is not one to rest at all. He is in a hurry to keep moving and find out what happens next. He is not interested in mere laurels either. What concerns him most is his journey-- the question of who he is and who else he can be. The one thing that sticks out about him is his single-minded curiosity-- a curiosity that borders on insatiable hunger. He is not satisfied. He is not smug. And yet, the surface is placid. He makes it all look effortless. Real cool. He says he hasn't found his identifiable star trait yet. That is precisely what makes him stand apart. He is enviably comfortable in his own skin. And as you watch him lie back and take on the world, never losing sight of what is real and what is not, you know a new kind of star is born. - Pragya Tiwari, Editor-in-Chief, The Big Indian Picture Visit www.thebigindianpicture.com

The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives.

The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives. Sooni Taraporevala, 56, grew up in a large Parsi family in South Bombay, leading a fairly regular life until the day she found out she had been accepted to study in Harvard University as an undergraduate. She had applied for a lark and still cannot believe she got in. Harvard opened up a whole new world for her, sowing the seeds for the extraordinary work she was to do as a photographer and screenwriter later in life. It was also here that she met her collaborator in cinema, Mira Nair. After her post-graduation she moved back to Bombay without a plan, "for emotional reasons". Back in her hometown, she began photographing her community, building an unparalleled body of photographic work compiled in several exhibitions and a book called Parsis: the Zoroastrians of India - A Photographic Journey. Furthermore, she brought to life a city slum in Salaam Bombay!, Mira Nair's directorial debut. Since then she has written several films including her own debut feature as a director, Little Zizou. She wants to continue writing films, directing them and taking pictures. Also on the bucket list is a novel. Here is hoping the newly acquired and richly deserved Padma Shri will keep her motivated. Visit www.thebigindianpicture.com

The Big Indian Picture - http://thebigindianpicture.com The TBIP Tête-à-Tête is a series of in-depth and intimate interviews with film personalities who are critical to this era of filmmaking. It is an attempt to understand their body of work. And their minds. Because who they are intrigues us just as much as what they do. Because what they do is because of who they are. In certain cases, despite who they are. Because integral to the love of cinema is the love of cinema's idols— the chosen few whose mystique remains intact despite the tabloids' obsession with their lives. Keep up on Facebook - www.facebook.com/TheBigIndianPicture Follow us on Twitter @TBIPicture