When Ashok Kaul directed "Paramvir Chakra" in 1994, he started a wave of war epics. His new film "Bhaggmati", a blend of animation and live action, is also on the verge of revolutionising Indian cinema.

"I wanted to elevate animation from just being a frivolous leisure pursuit," says Kaul, talking about the unique film released Friday amid much curiosity among filmgoers.

"It has earlier been attempted in 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit' and 'Space Jam', but not in any Indian film. Even in those two films, animation figures were used as props. Animation has been employed to tell a complete story in the film."

What about "Hum Tum", where animated characters kept popping up to symbolize the relationship between the lead couple?

"Yash (Chopra) visited my studio set while I was making 'Bhaggmati'. That is how animation clippings came into 'Hum Tum'... My film was delayed because the whole process of blending the two formats took more than two years. I prepared a whole team for two years to attempt that unheard of thing called an animation-feature film. People don't seem to understand how painstaking the whole process was."

In "Bhaqgmati", the live action is contemporary while the animated parts are period. The film has 95 minutes of animation and the rest is live action with Tabu and Milind Soman in the lead.

"I wanted the characters in animation to be close to reality. Tabu and Milind Soman have the classic look. When the film moves from animation to live, these actors don't let you feel the change," he says.

"Bhaggmati" was a long-cherished dream but arriving to this point was not easy.

His leading lady Tabu has abandoned the film's marketing. Kaul is quiet.

"I come from the army. I know how to fight battles. Every day, every film is a battle. I was very close to Raj Kapoor. I never took his help for anything. I don't need Tabu to sell my film."

Then, as an afterthought, he adds: "I told Tabu to see 'Chariots of Fire'. The last race is always the most decisive. She lost interest during the final race. My entire team of youngsters worked for 15-16 hours a day. In the last four years I took a holiday for one day - the day my mother died."

With an estimated budget of Rs.150 million, "Bhaggmati" released Friday along with Subhash Ghai's "Iqbal".

"This is the kind of film that must be put forward for the youth of our country. The underdogs need to see a silver lining. And the day they see the horizon our country will come back with 50 gold medals from the Olympics."

Kaul says the idea of "Bhaggmati" was hovering in his mind for 10 years. He was inspired into employing animation as an integral part of cinema, during an interaction with students of New York University when he went to deliver a lecture.

"Why should animation only be used for gags? I wanted to give the genre a new dimension. A student (at New York University) asked why India made 1,000 films and hardly any animation. I decided to do the needful. I announced there and then that I would make an intense love story rich in culture and nostalgia."

Kaul feels the essence of "Bhaggmati" is contained in a line from the film -- 'Jo beete huey kal ko khojta hai ussey aanewale kal ka abhas ho jata hai' (One who searches for his past learns his future).

"My film looks at life as one continuous unbroken stream of consciousness... But Bhaggmati isn't about reincarnation. I play with the past and present dimensions of time. And I have argued that both are equally alive.

"Even the Bhagavad Gita and Einstein's theory of relativity say the same thing. Our universe is a library of thoughts and actions... Nothing is destroyed. Whatever is and was will remain on this earth. There are two love stories in my film."

Waiting now to see the response to his labour of love, Kaul sighs, "It is my six-year-old dream... I admit I was apprehensive about the uniqueness of 'Bhaggmati'. But turning points have always been scary in history.

"I remember after 'Paramvir Chakra' Hema Malini and I were invited by the American Cancer Society. She was given a suite while I was given a small single room. After the film's screening I was moved to a suite. I hope to be elevated similarly after 'Bhaggmati'."