/> It was the year of the alien. When an American film Avatar completely took over our Bollywood filmmakers' psyche making them feel small inadequate and incompetent. Luckily Paa and 3 Idiots came along at year-end to give back the industry and our filmmakers their selfesteem. Almost every director and producer in Hindi in one voice, singled out Paa, 3 Idiots or Avatar as the film of their choice.

Karan Johar: "I actually have four favourite films this year. Kaminey, Paa, 3 Idiots and Avatar. All four raised the bars for filmmaking. But while the first three were for me aspirational, Avatar was unachievable.

Imtiaz Ali: "Avatar is my favourite film of 2009. It made an important point about our civilization in a subtle manner and with the most powerful audio-visual."

David Dhawan: "3 Idiots is the best-written and best-directed film of the year. Great entertainment value!"

Raj Kumar Santoshi: "My favourite film of 2009 is 3 Idiots. Good entertainment with a strong message. Fantastic performances, excellent script and direction."

Anees Bazmi: "Paa...For Amitji's ageless and edgeless performance. For Vidya Balan. And for Abhishek. And for the director Balki's craftsmanship."

Sriram Raghavan: "3 Idiots. Maybe because I'm an idiot myself."

Rajkumar Gupta: "Rocket Singh Salesman Of The Year. It proves what a brilliant writer, a gifted director and an extremely talented actor can create: a gem of a film!"

Nishikant Kamath: "3 Idiots.Never seen such a rollercoaster of laughs and sobs before. It's simply an amazing work"

Sanjay Gupta: "This question is redundant for anyone who has seen Avatar."

Tony D'Souza: "3 Idiots and Rocket Singh Salesman Of The Year"

Sujoy Ghosh: "Paa, because of Bachchan Saab's stupendous performance. Also Vidya Balan. It's a brave film which says being different is absolutely normal."

Kunal Kohli: "Without a doubt, 3 Idiots. It is one of the best films I've seen in recent times. I love its simplicity, subtlety and impact."

Santosh Sivan: "Paa...Mr Bachchan has set new standards in acting."

Mani Shankar: "Avatar, for its pantheism, its special-effects and soul. And Love Aaj Kal for its screenplay and performances."

Hansal Mehta: "Avatar is my favourite film of the year.With this film the awe of the big screen returned for me.. I felt like a wonder-stuck kid all over again.It's been a great year for Hindi cinema too. 3 Idiots, Dev D, Rocket Singh ...and Wanted were my favourites."

Sanjay Gadhvi: "Paa....because I'm probably Amitabh Bachchan's biggest fan. I admire him even more now because he had the courage and conviction to do Paa. Also superlative performances by Abhishek and Vidya. A brilliant film!"

Apoorva Lakhia: "Avatar. It was just an out-of-the-world experience. Rocket Singh Salesman Of The Year. It was simple, unpretentious and Shimit Amin worked wonders with the characters."

Paresh Mokashi (director of Oscar entry Harishchandrachi Factory): "The best film I saw in 2009 was Turtles Can Fly, an Iraqi film by Bahman Ghobadi. Impressive performances by children and seamless screenplay."

Govinda Nihalani: "Ghabricha Paaus in Marathi for its simple and effective style, originality of screenplay, humour steeped in pathos, deep compassion and humanism, it is an ode to the spirit of struggle to survive with dignity in the most hostile circumstances.

Paa...for being a deeply moving experience, sensitively directed avoiding mushy sentimentality and an unforgettable performance by Amitabh Bachchan. Avatar for its game-changing technology and good theme."

Milan Luthria: "Paa for the mighty Amitji. And I love Love Aaj Kal because it had the best music of the year."

Mohit Suri: "3 Idiots, 3 Idiots, 3 Idiots!"

Sajid Khan: "Avatar. It wasn't a film. It was an experience.I've seen it five times already. Going back for it."

Rensil d'Silva: "Dev D. Anurag Kashyap did a fresh take on a story I've always disliked. Dev D made me fall in love with the story!"

Abhinay Deo: "Without a doubt, 3 Idiots"

Tigmanshu Dhulia: " Dev D. It made Devdas who is otherwise such a boring character so interesting. It was young and unpredictable. Great acting by all. Great music. Superb production design, and all this at such a low budget."

Rohit Shetty: "3 Idiots for sure. There're very few films that make you feel good and happy. This is one of them."

Tarun Mansukhani: "Wake Up Sid. An actor was discovered, a writer-director was born and a great story was told. What more could be ask for?"

Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra: "Rocket Singh Salesman Of The Year...Though it had a weak screenplay, it was deftly directed and attempted to comment on our moral values. And Ranbir gave a flawless performance. Wish they had worked a bit more on the script, though."

Kunal Deshmukh: "It would have to be 3 Idiots. I haven't felt so positively about a film in a long time. It taught me how far ahead we filmmakers are when it comes to putting heart into our themes. I also thought Avatar was awesome.

Just like Star Wars it ushered in a new era in special effects. No one would ever want or dare to watch Avatar on a DVD, let alone a pirated DVD. Both 3 Idiots and Avatar made me think about what I should make next.I can't dare jump into anything half-baked."

Prakash Jha: "I haven't had the time to watch any of the films this year."

Vashu Bhagnani: "Wake Up, Sid.It's a simple and beautiful effort by a young and fresh director. The young identified with the characters."

Navdeep Singh: "Kaminey...Great performances. Great energy. Witty and clever entertainment."

Feroz Nadiadwala: "Paa....for Amitji's performance and conviction."

Ram Gopal Varma: "Avatar is by far one of the best films I've seen in my life.James Cameron is God. In fact he's gone a step ahead of God by building a world that even God couldn't imagine. After watching Avatar I felt I belong to a primitive filmmaking world."

Amole Gupte: "Harishchandrachi Factory was obviously the pick of the lot."