MUMBAI: Actor-director Rajat Kapoor is a busy man these days. The release of his production Bheja Fry on 13 April 2007, the sound mixing for his directorial venture Mithiya and preparations for Saurabh Shukla’s next venture titled E Dil are taking up most of his time, he says.

Mithiya is Kapoor’s third film in five years. “I have been able to make so many films due to the boom in the multiplex culture. For 10 years before that, I had just managed to make Private Detective, a film which did not even get a proper release. Now is the best time of cinema for independent filmmakers,” he quips.

Talking about Mithiya, Kapoor says, “Mithiya is a film about a very bad actor, played by Ranvir Shorey, who gets bashed up by gangsters. Neha Dhupia plays the gangsters’ moll. The film also features Vinay Pathak, Saurabh Shukla, Naseeruddin Shah and Harsh Chhaya.”

However, Kapoor will not be acting in the film, as he did in his last venture, Mixed Doubles. “Mixed Doubles was an exception because I did not find anyone else to play that character,” he says. “Mithiya’s canvas and scale are big and the treatment is that of a gangster film. It has been made on a budget of Rs 20 million (Rs 2 crore) as against Mixed Doubles, which was made in just Rs 6,500,000 (Rs 65 lakhs).” Although the film will be ready soon, it will release in India only by October 2007, because Kapoor wants to do the rounds of festival circuits till then.

Even as Kapoor is busy giving the final touches to Mithiya, he will commence work on Saurabh Shukla’s film E Dil from 1 May 2007. “In this film, I play an idealistic writer who doesn’t lie. The character requires me to shave off my head, which I will in a few days from now.”