So what if actor-director Kamal Haasan's Hindi film "Mumbai Express" derailed? That will not stop him from experimenting with languages other than his native Tamil.

"I have always been a nomad. My search is for a language that covers the complete gamut of emotions in every language," he says.

Kamal Haasan has just completed a Kannada film "Stree Samanya", which will be released next month.

"It has shaped up well. I have spoken my own Kannada lines. I know enough of it to manage the speech patterns with fluency. And now that my younger daughter is studying in Bangalore, I feel this is home ground," says the proud father.

Kamal Haasan is also doing a Telugu film for producer D. Rama Naidu in January.

"I think this is one vital way to bridge the gap... the cleft that seems to have captured the south."

He is currently shooting a Tamil film "Vettayadu Vilayadu" directed by Gowtham Menon, with Jyotika. "It is a cops thriller. I play a stylised cop so there are a lot of action scenes. Menon comes from the ad world. It is a very slick film.

"The film will be completed by November... I am then going into K.S. Ravi Kumar's next. I have done 'Chachi 420' and 'Tenali' with him. We will do something entertaining and funny. It will require a lot of work... extensive makeup."

After that, he plans to go straight into a Telugu film with D. Rama Naidu. "I have to do as many things as possible. I need to keep the home fires burning."