'Actors now know it is time to get into characters'

Tiwari, who had young Swara Bhaskar playing a mother to a teenage girl in her first Bollywood directorial venture Nil Battey Sannata, says as a filmmaker she feels actors now have more options in terms of characters. In an interview, the director says, "All the actors are aware about the shift in cinema. They all know that it is time to get into characters rather than just being themselves."

Tiwari says actors like Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt are easily shifting through films like Judwaa 2 and Humpty Sharma... to Badlapur and Udta Punjab. "They know what is working. We are in a very good state of Indian cinema because we can make all kind of movies. The actors have options in terms of roles. And we have a society which accepts them in different characters. It is commendable to see our actors working in such a manner." Tiwari is known for her slice-of-life cinema and her second film Bareilly Ki Barfi received both critical and commercial success.

"In the era of consumerism, where everything is available on the click of a button, it is tough to figure out where we belong. My idea is to go back to where we come from and cherish the things which we all had. We have grown up with certain values and it is important for me to remind the audiences about it. Why even today Basu Chatterjee and Hrishikesh Mukherjee are relevant? Because they talk about life. This is why lice-of-life cinema is currently working well."

She may have a realistic approach towards her storytelling but she believes in incorporating aspirational elements in her films.