I may be wrong in this assessment, but I find when the mind and body is occupied and in the midst of hectic schedules, that is when the maximum output takes place. I could be in the middle of the greatest stresses of work, but find myself having the capacity to attend to various other jobs as well. Not so when one idles. A lethargy sets in and you tend to postpone or delay the work. Does anyone out there feel merit in my assumptions ?

Two book inaugurations and there is a spate of requests to repeat the performance in various parts of the country. What else is of interest is the desire for institutions to invite me over for motivational speeches to corporates, speak on the world economy and its deteriorating conditions, the business of cinema, morals and ethics of writing and on…

This is beyond humor. What gives them the thought that I can ever be capable of indulging in something as severe as all this. But no, they persist and I regret with the utmost of politeness. I’d rather be with EF or tinkering with the piano. That is when there is no IPL, of course.

Dubbing for ‘Aladin’ starts tomorrow. The film is now ready and the long wait has been due to the extent of special effects that needed to be done on it. The science of computerization, the science of design and addition that enhances film, the science of sound and music in the background, all have been through an advanced course of modernization, most of it at times beyond my depth. It is all ‘double Dutch’ for me. So I merely go along with what the technical advises and stipulates and wait to see the results in the final print, by when it is impossible to make any changes much to your frustration.

Eager to see the results before the film has been sent off into the world of distributors and exhibition, I had, during the release of ‘Lawaris’ requested Prakash ji to send me the final copy in print to Bangalore, so I could have a look at it before release. I had been shooting in Mysore, another historic city in Karnataka and had driven down myself after the wrap at the shoot, to Bangalore. Disappointed at some of the final technical results of the film, I had driven back late at night and sat outside the steps of the Hotel in Mysore, lamenting the glitches and waiting for the morning to appear so I could speak to Prakash Mehra and express my anguish and hope that he would give in to my suggestions of the changes I had in mind.

Apart from the fact that technically it was impossible to change anything now at this late hour, it was the calm and confident persuasion of my director that kept me from further despair. And more than that it was the massive success of the film that conveyed to me that I knew absolutely nothing and was completely out of sync with direction and the making of films. For me that drive back to Mysore, some three hours, and the wait the entire night, seemed like the end of the world and my career. But PM, as the unit affectionately called Prakash Mehra, was so correct. And I so wrong.

I have prevented myself from excessive commentary on films after they are ready, primarily because my knowledge of the medium is beyond zero and secondly because each time I have, the film has crashed at the box office. So much for the 40 years of my so called association with the business !!

For me I think the joy of playing the character has been all that has mattered. I meet many an associate now that has been with me on several projects in the technical department in the past and have simply no recollection of their association. But ask me the details of the take on the shot or what transpired while enacting it and I would make my brain cells proud.

Fascinating the world of cinema and now, fascinating my years with it.

With love and …hope..

Amitabh Bachchan