Today you are Vashu Bhagnani, much sought-after, `sure hit' film producer. But one hears life was not always a bed of roses for you?

Oh yes! My family was into the textiles business. Suddenly, our business went down, as a result of which I had to leave school in 1974, at the age of 13. I'd take our sarees and go on tours to different towns, selling them.I worked day and night for nearly five years. This was in Calcutta. Then I got tired of this. In 1980, I left my dad and went to Delhi to become a contractor. There, I got into the spare parts electronics business. Slowly, I became a wholesale supplier to TIPS (blank) audio cassettes. And Puja Plastics was born.

That was quite a jump in your career?

It wasn't that I shifted my career because business wasn't doing well. In fact, I never had a kitchen chalane ka (running) problem.

How did you get into film production?

I told Ramesh Taurani of TIPS that he should start making movies and get a bigger slice of the profits, instead of just selling other people's music. Initially, he told me ki aisa hai toh tu bana picture (if that is so, you make a picture)!

One day, I saw Aankhen and decided that's it. This is my director, this is my actor. Ramesh Taurani told me pagal hai (you are mad), do you know how expensive this combination is (David Dhawan/Govinda), and what doyou know about film making? Log bade barbaad hote hain yahan (People get ruined out here).

But I had made up my mind. It was just a gamble. Paisa kahin to dalna tha (the money had to be invested somewhere)-if not this business, some other business.

Do you think you are competent as a film producer?

Pehle to kuch maloom nahin tha (Initially, I knew nothing)! On the third day of my first movie, Vivek Vaswani, my production executive, started troubling me. I kept quiet till I caught his own man selling my raw stock. Imagine! Today, this is my sixth film (Tera Jadoo Chal Gaya), but I still don't know everything. I am still learning, but one thing I've learnt after that experience is I will never leave the sets! I am always there physically -- mere jane bina kuch hota nahin hai (nothing happens without my knowing of it).

So which of your films is your favourite?

All my films are dear to me. How can I say? Biwi No.1 has been the most successfulfilm.

Since you are so involved in your films, do you think the director is redundant?

Not at all. The director is the captain of a ship. But it is the producer who puts in money.

As a producer, you are guilty of pandering to your stars' exorbitant price demands and going on foreign outdoors unnecessarily. Do you think outsized film budgets are justified?

Well, if we spend crores, it comes back in crores. See, so many people watch TV today. So, we have to show something different all the time. If we take Rs 4,000 rupees from an audience, at least give them something ki dil khush ho jaye (that will make them happy). Regarding star prices, I'll tell you something: It all depends on the personal relationship you share with the actors, and own your professional worth as a producer.