Ajay Devgan is determined not to copy Haji Mastan when he plays the alleged smuggler in Milan Luthria's Once Upon A Time in Mumbai.

But the problem is who will play Sona, the starlet who formed an Abu Salem-Monica Bedi kind of alliance in the 1970s?

Just like Salem, Mastan 'requested' filmmakers. Amitabh Bachchan played a character inspired by the 1970s' smuggler Haji Mastan in Yash Chopra's Deewaar.

Now it's Ajay Devgan's turn. For his role as Haji Mastan in Milan Luthria's Once Upon A Time In Mumbai, Ajay will be consulting all the material on the notorious Haji Mastan and also meeting up with the Big B to figure out how the senior actor approached the complex part.

The film will also focus on an aspect of Mastan's life that Deewaar didn't touch on namely his liaison with starlet Sona who bore a close resemblance to the mythic Madhubala.

In fact, Sona was given a pivotal role in Raj Khosla's Kachche Dhaage apparently on Haji Mastan's say-so. Milan Luthria, who bears an uncanny facial resemblance to Raj Khosla and who started his directorial career with a film entitled Kachche Dhaage, is all set to recreate the Haji Mastan-Sona affair.

Whoever the actress to play Sona, Ajay Devgan is equally nonchalant. "I've never bothered with whom I'm paired with. I only focus on my character."

From Bhagat Singh to Haji Mastan is a long journey for Ajay. "The character will be inspired by Haji Mastan. But I won't be copying him. When I played Mahesh Bhatt Saab in Zakhm, I wasn't trying to walk and talk, like him. We'll take many cinematic liberties. Playing Haji Mastan is very different from playing Bhagat Singh."

Cinema in 2009 went through many changes. And Ajay Devgan feels it's time for some rectification. "Not just star prices. There has to be correction in the economy and not entertainment. Everyone got carried away in all spheres of life... real-estate business, even banking and loans."

Personally Ajay is very happy with 2008. "I directed a film I'm proud of. People keep asking me when I'll direct another film. In 2008, I also had Golmaal Returns which was among the biggest hits of the year. I want to do sensible cinema in 2009. But I also want my Golmaal. Sensible cinema is limited in its appeal. The world over the biggest hits are entertaining escapist films and comedies. It could be in a super-hero film or just a no-brainer."

Not that Ajay watches too many films. "I haven't even watched Taare Zameen Par as yet," he ends sheepishly.

Ajay has very busy year ahead. "I've lots to do. I'm producing a couple of films, directing one. Then I'm starring in Prakash Jha's Rajniti and of course Once Upon A Time In Mumbai."