‘A tell-all on Bollywood would be lethal’

Renowned journalist, screenwriter and director, Khalid Mohamed’s collection of short stories, Two Mothers and Other Stories, published by Om Books International was launched by actor Anil Kapoor in the capital recently. While the stories are tagged as ‘bravely personal’, Mohammed was quick to clarify that though ‘they’re

Renowned journalist, screenwriter and director, Khalid Mohamed’s collection of short stories, Two Mothers and Other Stories, published by Om Books International was launched by actor Anil Kapoor in the capital recently.

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While the stories are tagged as ‘bravely personal’, Mohammed was quick to clarify that though ‘they’re inspired by his real life, they’re a work of imagination.’

He added, “The stories have different moods, but they are bound together by a common factor which is yearning. I write stories because I miss people. The title story Two Mothers is about living with two mothers in my head. One was my grandmother, who raised me up and the other whose portrait was on my wall and how I reconciled with having two mothers.”

The multi-talented writer, who by his own admission has never faced the writer's block, found writing the book an 'exhausting' experience. But as expected he is already working on a new book with Anil Kapoor.

Known for films such as Fiza and Zubeidaa, Mohamed is as intimate with Bollywood as anyone can get, still he is reluctant about revealing the secrets of the film industry in a tell-all.

“A tell-all on Bollywood would be too lethal, there will be too much spice, I will have to leave town or country. It will be sensational and become the only things I would have done in life. It’s too typical a thing to do to write about Bollywood,” he chuckled.

“I think it's in bad taste to write about things you've seen closely because you need to respect private trust, he added on a more serous note.

But he might be tempted to spill the beans if 'somebody messes' with him.