Though Mira Nair has homes in Delhi, Kampala, and New York, she admits that she feels the most rooted in Delhi. These cities, she says, have shaped her perspective. Speaking at a recent discussion on films and migration with Adil Hussain in the capital, Nair reflected on her storytelling, which often highlights the lives of those on the margins. Excerpts.

When asked if she would make The Namesake today, nearly 18 years later, with everything happening in the US, Mira said, “I’m sure I would,” adding, “But right now, we’re in such an immediate situation of completely unbelievable repatriation – if you could call it that. What is going on with the planes bringing back our people – it’s so shocking for me. But it needs time for me to brew it, to know what one would say about it. Because what I don’t want to do ever in my work is preach to the converted. You know, to say, ‘Haye haye! Itni buri khabar hai yeh.’ That’s not enough. You’ve got to lead people into a world, and while you take them into your world, you have to make them see the world anew. It’s not about preaching or giving a lecture. Right now, the situation is so horrific that I need time to process it to answer the question truthfully about whether I’d make a film about it. It will take some time.”

In response to a question on how she deals with rejections and if she ever felt like giving up as a director, Mira said that rigour is the most important quality for those in arts. She said, “People think I am successful, but ask my assistant – I am working 12 hours a day, trying to convince the marketplace to let me make a film, and I’m going to make it. My next film is on Amrita Sher-Gil, the great painter, but it’s taken me four years. This is my fifth year. And in just about five months, I hope to shoot it. It’s not a very expensive film, but it’s a film that has to take place in Hungary, Paris, and India. It happened 100 years ago, so the period aspect comes with a cost. But it’s like – people over there or anywhere except India don’t even know who she is. They are like, ‘Why should we go to the theatres? Kaun hai yeh?’ I said, ‘Did you know about Frida Kahlo until her movie came out? It’s the same deal.’ And I am sure that even in the western world, Amrita will become an icon because she is beyond identity.”

Mira said, “I never think of myself as a migrant; I never have. I feel that my roots are so strong that I can fly anywhere and be who I am. Of course, the experience of living between worlds has definitely shaped my being, my sensibilities, and my art. I still have an Indian passport, which is like an accordion of visas, but I was never interested in losing it. I don’t feel like an immigrant even now. The key for me is to feel engaged where I am.”

She added, “In these 35-40 years, I do have three very living homes – in Delhi, Kampala (Uganda), and New York City. I feel rooted, the most rooted, right here (in Delhi). It’s like grasping the sense of the world and having an expansive worldview is actually very humbling.”