Mahesh Bhatt’s ‘Janam’ inspired debutant director Suhrita Das to make ‘Tu Meri Poori Kahani’

Mumbai, Sep 28 (PTI) Debutante director Suhrita Das said she was inspired by acclaimed filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt’s 1998 semi-autobiographical film “Janam” for her debut feature film, “Tu Meri Poori Kahani”.

Released on Friday, “Tu Meri Poori Kahani” follows the story of a young star's pursuit of fame and success and how it leads to emptiness until true love teaches the value of connection. It features newcomers Hirranya Ojha, Arhaan Pateel, alongside Tigmanshu Dhulia and Juhi Babbar.

Das said she drew inspiration from "Janam", about a young filmmaker facing the stigma of illegitimacy, to shape the character arc of the female lead in "Tu Meri Poori Kahani".

“‘Janam’ is an important source from where we’ve drawn the character of Anika from. To give my heroine a basic angst and a purpose to step ahead, like her mother’s humiliation, she steps out and wants to be an actress because she wants to give her mother a place in the world. That inside of that house, we couldn’t have known without Bhatt sahab, his own references from his life and ‘Janam’,” the filmmaker told PTI in an interview.

Das, who worked as a writer alongside Bhatt on films like “1920: Horrors of the Heart” (2023) and “Haunted Ghosts of the Past” (2025), said the veteran filmmaker’s book, “A Taste of Life”, also inspired her to pursue writing.

“I did not actually know how to write. So, my journey started from there and I took it upon myself that this is that one opportunity that life has given me and I’ve to live a truthful life, if not for anyone else, but for my children. I don’t want to bring them up in a bubble, or give them a feeling of falsity.

"Like, this is their mother, she has ambition, maybe 38, is too late to start life, but she still dreams of making a start. So, I took all the courage and set out, and then one step after another,” the Kolkata-born director said about her foray into films.

Das said she has begun working on her next movie, for which she hopes to cast Pooja Bhatt.

“I’ve learned from Bhatt sahab that cinema cannot be born without the impulse of life,” she said, adding the memories of leaving her children to chase her dreams linger in her heart even today and she has decided to weave a story around it.

“I’ve been desperate to do it with Pooja. We want to make this in an intense and emotional space with a young boy’s love story and unfolding of his mother’s story,” Das said. PTI KKP RB RB