Water has been ruling Deepa Mehta's heart and mind since the movie was first pitched by Canada as its official entry for the Best foreign language film category in Oscars.

The much-in-news issue of racism will be the theme of Deepa Mehta's next film titled Exclusion. The film is based on an incident that occurred in early twentieth century known as 'Komagata Maru.' It deals with exclusion laws passed in Canada at that time to keep Asians at bay.

Though Deepa Mehta denies ever being a victim of racism herself, she agrees that the menace is a reality and according to her it is related to ‘economy'. "There was a time when the West didn't consider the Arabs white, but today they do, since Arabs are rich today," she says.

"Racism hasn't got to do with the colour of your skin, rather its whether you belong to a developed world or not," adds Deepa. Asked if she thought if Shilpa Shetty was a victim of racism in the Celebrity Big Brother, she gives a definitive yes.

Coming back to Exclusion in which Deepa would be directing Amitabh Bachchan, Deepa says, "I am still writing the film, it will go on floor only after that, John and Seema will be there in my film, and A R Rehman will be giving the music".