As the debate on film costs and entourage expenses continues to rage, actor Ravi Dubey recently posted that his short film Taciit is ‘zero budget’. He says, “We had this disruptive story and shot it on our phones, guerilla-style in Mumbai, about eight-nine months ago.”

Ask the 40-year-old his take on the rising budget concerns in the film industry, and he shares, “Film banane ke liye sirf budget nahi chahiye hote, it is a pre-conceived notion. If my intention is to make a film, I can do it in Rs. 50,000 too. Several interesting films are making a buzz internationally including at Cannes, Busan and other film festivals. Moreover, a number of them coming out of India. These films wouldn’t have been made if people with deep pockets were making it. I know some films that were shot entirely in nine days. (Academy award-winning film) Whiplash (2014) was shot in record time, too.”

Talking about his short that revolves around domestic violence, Dubey reveals he’s also entered it in a few international film festivals. The actor says, “It all happened over a cup of coffee. Domestic abuse is a sensitive situation globally, not just in India.”

Sharing how actor, wife Sargun Mehta has shot for films with minimum comforts, he says, “Sargun was shooting in the United Kingdom recently on top of a hill. She would get into a car and travel for kilometres just to use the washroom. We are talking about one of the top stars of the Punjabi industry. We are here to make films. If the story, light, location is working, that trumps every other comfort on set.”