Kalki Koechlin was the only choice to play Laila in Margarita With A Straw. However, newcomer Sayani Gupta was chosen from over a 100 girls who auditioned for the part of 'Khanum', the visually impaired Pakistani student activist in the film.

Director Shonali Bose conceived the character to make the point that visually impaired people can often see more than those who are sighted. She says, "I was a feisty activist in my youth, both in Delhi University and New York, where I went for my post-graduation. And I put a lot of myself in 'Khanum'."

Says Sayani, "I was awestruck by Shonali and her film Amu when she came for a screening to my college while I was studying there. So it's a dream come true to be directed by her in such an interesting film."