Anupam busy with Hawai Dada

If you've never heard of Tachmarhi in Madhya Pradesh don't be embarrassed. That's where Anupam Kher is shooting his home production Hawai Dada with Tinu Anand and an "incredible child artiste"(Anupam's description) named Gargi.

It's the story of an old man and his grand-daughter. Looks like films with sensitive children in the forefront are in vogue after Taare Zameen Par..

Anupam is having the time of his life. "I've never seen a place so unspoilt and the people so unaffected. After seeing Tachmarhi, I've decided to do a Bharat Darshan every year, visit places no one has heard of, like Tachmarhi."

An incredible thing happened to Anupam on the way to Tachmarhi. "I stopped at this mithai ki dukaan which seemed to be selling authentic mithai. Soon people from the locality began gathering around me. I started chatting up with the owner of the sweet shop. He revealed he was the grandson of the renowned Hindi poet Pandit Makhanlal Chaturvedi who has written one of my favourite poems 'Pushp Ki Abhilasha'. It just goes to show that sweetness can be discovered in the most unexpected places."

Not so sweet is Anupam's tryst with a luna mo-ped. "We needed my character to ride a luna that's totally outdated and out of shape. They got me a two-wheeler whose life span expired ten years ago. This luna is driving me loony."