I was still in college when Satish (Kaushik) passed out of the National School of Drama (NSD). I arrived in Mumbai in 1982. We got together for the first time for Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, he as an actor and dialogue writer, and me as an assistant director and writer. We were like brothers; he was somewhat older.

His trajectory as a human being and a professional is amazing. The small parts he played prior to Mr India, where he also assisted Shekhar Kapur, turned his life around. He met Javed (Akhtar) saab. Satish and I were like younger brothers around Javed saab for a long time. [Despite] the kind of beginnings Satish had, over the course of his journey until recently, he would laugh at them in a self-deprecating way, with his own sense of humour. He would tell great stories of his past, not only being proud [of his work] as an actor and director but also in theatre.