Was Sushmita Sen added as an afterthought?
Yes. Sushmita was the final addition to the cast. It is a meaningful role. After the film was shot and ready, we thought we needed a sutradhar [narrator] to tie the various strands in the story together. She narrates the story. The film was in the news on account of censorship problems. What happened? The censors had objected to some portions. All’s well that ends well. We were given two options. Take an A certificate or take a U/A certificate. We opted for the former, because the latter would have subjected [our film] to some cuts, which would have diluted the film. Does that mean the crude language to which the censors objected has been retained? Exactly! Why shouldn’t it? That’s a reality of the chawl system. I have not made a candy-floss romance. There is a love-making scene [featuring Divya Dutta] too. It has been retained to the extent I wanted. Then doesn’t PJPSNJ cease to be a family film? Good question. PJPSNJ is a family film. Every family needs to know that there are other f
