/> The success of the Deols' family-film Apne has given the sleeping lion Sunny Deol a chance to rise and shine as never before.

Sunny has taken several hard decisions. One of them is to turn director with a film called Man.

"My Apne writer Neeraj Pathak narrated this subject,and I instantly fell for it. Unfortunately we couldn't get the project on the road because I got busy with Apne. Now that Apne has been accepted so warmly, I've gathered the courage to revive that project. And yes I'll be directing and producing Man along with Neeraj."

Neeraj will be billed as the co-director of Man.

Explains Sunny, "We're working so closely on every aspect of the project, from script to casting, it'd be tough to draw a line between Neeraj's creative input and mine. Thererefore the credit titles will read our names as co-directors."

Interestingly Sunny has given the film industry several talented directors including Raj Kumar Santoshi and Gurinder Chaddha (who made the aborted London for Sunny).

"It's another matter that they've started with me and moved on," laughs Sunny mirthlessly.

Even more interestingly Sunny is the only star from his generation to have taken the plunge as a director. "I directed Dillagi with my brother Bobby and me in the lead eight years ago.I've always been interested in being behind the camera. I took keen interest in the scripting and other technicalities of my acting debut Betaab. Today I think I'm fully prepared to direct."