A lot of me is in Turning 30: Alankrita Srivastava

The film, about an urban woman living in Mumbai and how her life takes a turn when she hits the age of 30, releases this Friday.

"A lot of me is there in the film. I was very clear that this is a story about people from my world. Not only me, I think a lot of women living in the cities will find snippets of their lives in the movie. It shows what a city girl`s life is like," Alankrita told PTI.

The debutant, who herself turned 30 while shooting the movie, worked as assistant director on Prakash Jha`s movies like `Gangaajal`, `Apaharan` and `Rajneeti`, before taking up the reins as a director.

But instead of following her mentor, Alankrita says she wanted to make cinema that was closer to the realities around her.

"I think it is very important to have your own voice. I really enjoyed assisting on those films but it is not my voice. Thankfully, Prakashji never expected a clone of his movies, which is the case with many first time directors. He wanted me to make something which was true to me," she says.

The film may draw comparison`s to Hollywood chick flicks, a genre which is relatively new to Indian cinema.

Alankrita admits that there is not much support for stories which are told from a woman`s perspective in Bollywood.

"I think it is very hard to find support for a fresh perspective in cinema. There are not many films on women, who explore the subject without being judgemental. This is something I would like to do in my next movies too," says Alankrita.

The first timer found support from Prakash Jha, who liked the script and decided to finance it.

"I had told him about the idea and it was an obvious choice for me. I knew that he would not question the urban setting and the lack of hero in the movie and I was right. He really encouraged me and told me not to make any compromises," she says.

Since the film is mostly about women, told through a woman, it was hard to find male lead for the movie. Alankrita says Purab Kohli was initially reluctant to do the movie.

"Purab did not want to do it first time but finally we discussed and he agreed. He was my first choice for the role.

However, finding the perfect female protagonist was a challenge," she says.