Mani Ratnam can't stop raving about Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, his lead actors in "Guru." He says: "Abhishek was my first choice as the protagonist and he carries the entire film on his shoulders.

As far as Aishwarya goes, she has matured into a fine actress and her subtle performance in the film impresses." Mani and the entire cast of "Guru" are at Toronto for the premiere of the film today at Elgin and Winters Garden theatre centre.

In fact, Mani is the first Indian director to have a film premiered at this prestigious theatre where Hollywood films such as "Lord of the Rings" were premiered.