Largely autobiographical, the 31-year old wrote it in the same room he had as a boy in Hyderabad. Shot in his hometown and in his home, the film is a humorous story of a man who comes back to India for a holiday and spends it trying to dodge marriage traps. But the essence of the movie, and thereason why it strikes a chord in everybody, is the question that Kukunoor says all NRI's face: Where is home?

Helping him find the answer was his whole family. The cast and crew of the movie was largely made up of the Kukunoor clan and their friends. "The only professional was the camera man," he says. The lead is played by Kukunoor himself for two reasons -- nobody else had that NRI accent and he couldn't afford a professional. The film was wrapped up for under Rs 20 lakh -- again with some help from friends and family. And while the lack of funds show on the screen, it is to Kukunoor's credit that it doesn't take away from the charm of the film. The biggest strength is the tight script, laced liberally with humour. Though he packed in workshops on script writing and film-making while still working, it is probably his faith in himself which carried him through. "It is not arrogance but I really believe that I can make good films," he says. He also credits "stupidity" as one of the reasons why HyderabadBlues got made. "I was stupid enough not to question myself while making the film and to think I knew what I was doing," he laughs.

Though a lot depends on whether the film does well or not, Kukunoor is sure that not being too sure about the future is the way of life. His company, which he started with Eliaha -- a friend who is in the movie and doubled up as the assistant director -- is called SIC or Stability Is a Curse. Though that eternal symbol of stability, the tower, shown crumbling and falling down on his visiting card is an excessive touch, it reveals just how seriously Kukunoor takes his new mantra for life. "I am prepared for a long battle," he says with the enthusiasm of a five-year-old. And while he warms up to insecurity, he also has a more definite reason to be sunny side-up -- NFDC has approved his new script.

Though this script is about a coming-of-age tale of an adolescent boy, with Hyderabad Blues Kukunoor found himself growing up in a different way. He says the film broughthome the fact just how important family is.

"Everybody who helped didn't have to because I didn't bother to keep in touch with them when I was away." And though he was brought up to do "that great Indian middle class thing -- climbing the corporate ladder," all his worldly success didn't give him the confidence that Hyderabad Blues has. "All of us believe that we are capable of great things and only if we get that one chance, we'll show it. But after taking the plunge and resigning my job, which was the most difficult part, and actually making the film, I don't have to prove anything to myself anymore," he says. The big dilemma of where he belonged, was also solved. "While making the film, I realised that I don't have to answer the question at all. I have a foot in each continent and I am happy this way."

At Cinemax , Goregaon. Time: 10.00 pm.