Lately Ramu has been caught in a controversy regarding his scrapped film with superstar Shahrukh Khan. However he didn't bother to much about it and has proceeded to complete the shooting of his film Nishabd, in the quiet solace of South India.

Verma has been shooting with one of his favourite actors Amitabh Bachchan. Nishabd is the love story of an older man played by Amitabh and a younger woman played by newcomer Jiah Khan.

Reveals Verma: "It's an intense love story between an older man and a younger girl. Bodies age, but feelings don't."

"Older men get attracted to and fall in love with younger girls but because of their position and maturity, cannot do anything. It's the story of a man caught between his rationality and the strength of his feelings towards her."

About casting Jiah the director says: "I had Mr Bachchan's dates and we were discussing various scripts and story ideas. One day, I told him a storyline about an older man falling in love with a younger girl. He was excited, but he asked me ‘what about the girl'? The first name that popped up in my mind was Jiah."

"Mr Bachchan is a megastar and I wanted somebody totally new to create that trauma and make her grow in his eyes. Jiah is exactly in real-life like the character she plays in Nishabd — sensuous and of today's generation."

He however clarifies: "There is a popular perception that Nishabd has lot of steamy scenes between Bachchan and Jiah. That's not true. The thought is erotic and there is a strong undercurrent of sexuality, but it has not been done at the expense of putting Mr Bachchan in a demeaning light. There are no sexually explicit scenes."

Jiah was born and brought up in London. She was supposed to be making her debut in Anurag Basu's Tumsa Nahin Dekha, but was replaced at the last minute by Dia Mirza. Jiah however now has more than she could have ever imagined. Her first film is directed by Ram Gopal Varma and she is acting opposite a legend, Amitabh Bachchan.

She squeals, "I was very nervous when I first started working with him. But he is such an incredibly sexy man. He helped me learn acting and also made me extremely comfortable. Not once did I feel I was working with a super-duper star."

The film's shooting has been completed and will be released in September. The film also starrs Revathy, Rukhsar and Aftab Shivdasani.