Good storytelling for me is not so much technical expertise, which I know is applauded often; it's actually freshness of approach. It does mean you sometimes stumble and fall and make a horrible mess of things in seeking that freshness, but you should always keep trying to do that.

The extraordinary thing about India is that it's such a family place. It's full of families everywhere.

If you take a loud pride in anything, people will rightly shoot you down.

I kind of call myself an atheist, I suppose - although quite a spiritual atheist, I hope.

It's not so much what you learn about Mumbai, it's what you learn about yourself, really. It's a funny old hippie thing, but it's true as well. You find out a lot about yourself and your tolerance, and about your inclusiveness.

I say to first time filmmakers that when they're asked, they should go to America as you're far more likely to get a chance.

I find my own pain and others' difficult to tolerate, so I always want to try to shift things so they'll be better. But in doing that, if I am coming from a place of ego, I often cause harm. So it's a struggle for me to set my ego outside and find a softer and more compassionate way of approaching things.