How does a director, who is in the midst of shooting his movie, double up as a producer? It’s tricky, but worthwhile, says Shoojit Sircar. The Umesh Chronicles, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Babil Khan and Kriti Panth, is set to screen at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne on August 22. For Sircar, Pooja Kaul’s directorial venture is a “special film”. “We shot it with Jakob Ihre [Chernobyl cinematographer] whom I’ve known since he shot Yahaan [2005]. Producing is tricky for me. So, I let my partner Ronnie Lahiri do the heavy lifting, and I looked after the creative part. In this film, the nostalgia of the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s has come through beautifully, as has that era’s tranquility of life. It’s about a girl growing up. That’s a beautiful experience to bring to the screen,” he smiles.

Irrfan and Shoojit Sircar