Celebrated Hollywood filmmaker Ari Aster, who specialises in making horror films, such as Hereditary, is a fan of the late Oscar-winning Indian legend Satyajit Ray. He says Ray's films inspired him to visit India. "I am enjoying it here. I have never been to India before. I grew up obsessed with the movies of Satyajit Ray. He is one of my heroes and after watching his films, I wanted to come to India," Aster said on the sidelines of an ongoing film festival.

Aster's new folk-horror film Midsommar was screened at the festival. "I need to interact with more people who saw the film to have a full picture of how it played here. But people have been enthusiastic. They engage at a very deep level. They have come to me with smart and thoughtful questions. Here, there is a commitment to engaging with cinema, that's something you don't find everywhere," he shared.