I swept floors. I brought half of the things from my own house. For me, producing a film was not just about bringing in funds, making schedules and dealing with numbers, it was about realizing the imagery that we all had in our mind. There is a certain level of involvement that I feel a producer needs to have to give the film that push it needs," Dia told IANS.
Dia and Zayed, along with Sahil Sangha, have launched the production house Bornfree and are currently in the process of finishing their first film under the banner.
It is being directed by Sangha and stars Dia and Zayed.
"Zayed scolded me once on the sets. I was behaving as if guests have come to my house. So I was taking care of smallest of things myself. Zayed was like you are an actor also, so you just need to calm down and relax and take a seat when your shot is over," said the 29-year-old.
"It was a healthy fight and I'm glad that we had it. He was scolding me because he was looking out for me and that's what you expect from your partner, to care for you, to account for you," she added.
"Love, Breakups, Zindagi" is a romantic comedy and is slated to release in August. The film also stars Cyrus Sahukar, Tisca Chopra, Satyadeep Misra, Pallavi, Vaibhav Talwar and newcomer Auritra Ghosh and Umang in lead roles.
Although Dia is enjoying her newfound role of a producer, she finds it extremely exhausting.
"I've been asked what am I doing to lose weight, I said, I turned producer. With Sahil, Zayed and me, our day after pack up didn't end. It's been long hours, but it is just such an overwhelming experience to see what you thought to do," she said.
"I didn't have any clue that it will be so enormous a task. I think you have an inclination, but you don't realize how much you have to put into it to make it happen everyday. I think you really need to love it passionately to give it all of yourself," she added.
Now that she has tried production, Dia, who has acted in films like "Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein", "Tehzeeb", "Lage Raho Munna Bhai", "Shootout at Lokhandwala" and "Hum Tum Aur Ghost", is keen on donning the director's hat.
"Direction is something I have always consciously thought about even when I was acting. I think it was my level of interest in the technicalities of making a film and how it all comes together. Soon I will direct a film," she revealed.
