`Rang de Basanti` was a tough act to follow: Mehra

Mumbai, Feb 05: Filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra has admitted that `Rang de Basanti` was a tough act to follow and credits his co-writers for their patience and craft which carved out his next offering `Delhi-6`. The film starring Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor is scheduled for February 20 release.

He said initially he was confused as to which would be his next project since `Rang de Basanti` was a tough act to follow. Editor P S Bharati helped him choose, said Mehra. "She understands my weaknesses and vacuum, and pushes me in the right direction. She was very clear that `Delhi-6` would mean raising the bar for me as a director and story teller," he said. For Mehra, the process of putting together a film always begins with the story idea where he starts putting his thoughts together. Kamlesh Pandey weaves a story out of his fragmented thoughts, the filmmaker said. Prasoon Joshi takes it to another level bringing in his perspective by giving the characters depth and clarity. However for `Delhi-6`, Mehra said he wrote and re-wrote the treatment and characters, researching all the while and bouncing off ideas to Bharati. "Her clarity helped me find my own course. In this case, I was digging into my childhood memories and setting them against today`s times. My thoughts were abstract and it was not going to be easy for the co-writers to decipher. It was their patience and craft which carved out a story...a beautiful story called Delhi-6," he added. Bureau Report