Filmmaker Sudhir Mishra isn’t one to outright deny that box-office collections matter for a film. He is yet to make a masala potboiler, but he is satisfied that the films he has made till date have paid for themselves, while telling stories that he wanted to tell.

“We all want a full house, an audience, and want our films to succeed as well as connect with people all over the country. Some of us can appeal to a large niche and others to a more mass audience. I think you should stick to who you are rather than attempt something different. My films recover their money and connect with a larger audience,” shares the Serious Men (2020) director.

He further says that he feels happy when a content-driven film manages to strike a chord with the masses and not just one particular class of audience, as it makes the deal sweeter. He says, “There is a kind of audience that likes my films, and I am quite happy with that. I’m confident that if my film reaches a large audience and earns Rs. 200 crore, I will be pleased.”

His next is another subject-heavy film, with actors Bhumi Pednekar and Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Mishra is taking the full onus on himself for the fate of the film. “This is the kind of film I have been meaning to do for two-three years now. It’s on the road and is called Afwaah, which means rumours. Sometimes, rumours kill. It’s about two people trapped in a roller-coaster ride in which a rumour kind of chases them and how they survive that. It’s an edgy, thrilling and darkly funny film. I hope I can pull it off, because I have a great star cast and a wonderful producer. If it doesn’t work, then the fault would be mine,” he ends.