Every frame and every scene has to have an intention.

It gave me a lot of pleasure and pride that 90 percent of the crew for 'Monsoon Wedding,' and most of my film, are women. We get the work done, you know, much lesser play of ego... And I really believe in harmony, I believe in working in a spirit of egolessness and that the film is bigger than all of us.

We all know the power of film; we all know there's almost nothing more powerful than to see people on film that look and talk like you, like we do.

Never treat anything you do as a stepping stone. Do it fully, and follow it completely.

What is really important to me is a sense of humour and a mischief about life. Life is just too boring otherwise.

I often begin movies with music in my head; it's a very important dimension to me. Not just the music itself, but how to use music in film: when and how and subtlety. I don't like to be too sweet in my stories, and I like the abrasive clang, the contrasting of sounds and cultures.

I look for the humanity in people, however big the politics or oppressive the situation may be, whether it's subsumed within a human being or between two human beings. I want to help us hold a mirror to ourselves.