That’s how Mallika Sarabhai refers to her early stint in Bollywood even as she’s excited about her second run

Her earlier stint in movies  during the ’70s (she debuted in Himalaya se Ooncha) was like a visit to ‘a dirty toilet in a train’, but danseuse Mallika Sarabhai is ready to give the big screen another try. Not only is she making a comeback to films with a ‘miniscule’ part in Joybroto Mukherjee’s Love Songs but is also looking to direct her first feature film soon.

Ask her more about it and she declines to reveal much. “I will be co-directing it. It’s based on a book that I absolutely loved. I wouldn’t be able to tell you its name.” So is she acting in it? “ I will definitely play a role. For the cast, we have some people in mind, including some mainstream actors. Right now, I’m learning to write a script.” She continues, “I love movies, and I would love to do more of them. But unfortunately my earlier experiences were like a visit to a dirty toilet in a train. There was no intelligence that went into film-making. Everything was haphazard. I had more educational degrees than the entire unit put together!”

Now, however things have changed for the better, she says. “I had a blast in Love Songs even though I had a miniscule role and only shot for two days.” So is she open to doing more films now? “Yes absolutely! So many intelligent films are being made, and also the number of educated, erudite people in the movies has increased.”

For someone who has been very vocal about the communal divide and riots in Gujarat, does she feel enough films are being made on the sensitive subject? “Not really! We have to make movies that document these issues. The biggest agent of change in the country can be cinema.”

But does she have the time for it, given that her dance academy Darpana and shows consume  a chunk of her life? “My father (late scientist Vikram Sarabhai) used to always say that if you want to follow your passion, learn to stretch time.”