Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 22, 2012)

A few months before he ended his sabbatical as a director, Ramesh Sippy had dropped by the sets of Sonali Cable which opens on October 17. It was late evening and the film's lead pair, Rhea Chakraborty and Ali Fazal, were shooting a lovemaking scene that takes place in the middle of a romantic track, Ek Mulaqat.

“Their nervousness was visible on camera and dad took them and the director Charu (Charudutt Acharya) to the makeup van and, moment by moment, explained the choreography of hands, eyes and body language that would make the scene sensual and memorable,“ recalls his son and co-producer Rohan Sippy.

He adds that Sippy explained how to draw out the moment of intimacy, the fleeting touches, which made it all the more tantalising and passionate. “With such expert guidance from him, the actors were able to pull off the scene and this time chemistry was great,“ says Rohan.

When Mirror brought this up Sippy, he questioned, “Who told you this?“ When told that it was his son Rohan he guffawed, “Let's say that was a practice session--a dress rehearsal-for me. I was testing myself to see if I was ready to get back behind the camera. And it was also for a little bit of luck.“