For Sajid Ali, it is “quite a surprise” that his directorial debut, Laila Majnu (2018), has been re-released across the country after a good response in Jammu & Kashmir recently. While the Avinash Tiwary and Triptii Dimri-starrer has become popular over the years, Ali insists that a lot of love for it from the fans now comes out of guilt, as the film didn’t really get its due when it was released six years ago.

Ali adds that they decided to re-release the movie as fans requested for it. “Since I was not on social media, I had no idea about the kind of following the film had. I’ve been privy to conversations, where people have gone out of their way to talk and write about Laila Majnu out of guilt. Hence, the overcompensation by the fans,” says Ali.

He admits that the film’s dismal box-office performance did hurt him: “I thought it was the kind of film that should have worked. It took me time to get back to reality. Now, I am not as nervous, because the heartbreak has already happened.”

While Ali witnessed Tiwary’s stardom recently in Kashmir, he’s proud of Dimri’s journey too. “After Laila Majnu flopped big time, I saw her struggle. She didn’t wear fancy clothes and was travelling in autos. I felt bad for her, as it had been just six months for her in Mumbai, but she took up an acting course. We told her, ‘You are a good actor. You should focus on honing your dancing skills’. But she went back to zero and uske baad uske andar ka real actor jaaga hai. So, I give her all the credit, because she is truly self-made,” the director ends.