April 24, 2008 4:34:40 PM IST Joginder Tuteja, Bollywood Trade News Network

Onir has come back with happy memories from his shoot of SORRY BHAI in Mauritius. Not just did he enjoy every minute of being behind the camera months after he helmed it last for BAS EK PAL, he also had a dream of working with one of his all time favorite actors, Shabana Azmi, come true.

"Since the time I started film making, I had two people in my mind who were a part of my dream cast - Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah. With SORRY BHAI, one part of my dream has come true. Now I hope Naseeruddin Shah too would happen to me soon", smiles Onir whose debut directorial effort MY BROTHER NIKHIL is still remembered for it's path breaking subject and treatment.

"I was apprehensive if Shabana would be willing to work with me. However, it wasn't difficult at the end of the day and once she was on board, I knew I had a film in hand which would strike a chord with the audience", gushes Onir.

For years Shabana Azmi has been considered to be a thinking actor who wants to understand not just the depth of the character she is portraying but even things like its background, specific behavior as well as everything else which adds to the character's soul. Did it become difficult for Onir when it came to explaining the character's nuances to the veteran actor?

"On the contrary it was just the opposite. She comes with such good inputs and doesn't hesitate in letting the director know about what she thinks of the scene and the way the character is required to behave. However, it can hardly be termed as interference", defends Onir.

Reflecting on his first time association with the actor, he says fondly, "In my view, having someone like Shabana only adds to the scene. She firmly believes that after a point of view has been explained, it should be left to the director to call the shots. Same happened in my case as well since once I gathered feedback from actors around me, I took a final call on what worked best for the film."

Shabana's role in SORRY BHAI:

In SORRY BHAI, Shabana plays mother to Sanjay Suri and Sharman Joshi while Chitrangada Singh plays Sanjay's fiancee. The film is about how Sharman and Chitrangada get drawn to each other and in spite of their attempt to hide their feelings for each other; they are forced to admit them. How the family (which also comprises of Boman Irani as Shabana's husband) tackles the issue and brings the story to a happy ending is what SORRY BHAI is about.