“I have admired Vishal’s work for a long time, so when I realised that the call wasn’t exactly a prank, I grabbed the opportunity,” he says. In the sets of the film, Gupte was happy to find a kind of camaraderie between actors that reminded him of his Mirch Masala days (he was an assistant to director Ketan Mehta for the film). “Shahid and Priyanka’s dedication to the project reminded me of Smita Patel and Naseeruddin Shah,” he says.

Vishal impressed Gupte with his control over his craft. “He is completely consumed by his vision and yet involves the actor in the process,” says Gupte.

Gupte’s next film will be about kids too. “But it would be unfair to call it another Taare Zameen Par,” Gupte says.