Starring in soul-stirring films one after another, Rahul Bose has had his fair share in both, mainstream and parallel cinema. Not only has he made a successful stint as an actor, but as a director and a producer too. And with his latest pursuit, he is all set to give his best and get the best.

Based on the life of a 13-year-old tribal girl who conquered the Everest, Poorna sketches Malavath Purna&’s struggles and her tough journey. In an exclusive interview with thestatesman.com, Rahul spoke about the making of the film in detail and how he spent 14 long months in a cave while directing it, and said that it was a “win-win-win” situation for him.’

“The three parts of life that consume me are – cinema, sport, and social activism. So, this film was perfect as not only was it cinema, but it had mountaineering, and it&’s about a poor adivasi girl from Telangana who becomes the youngest girl in history to climb the Mount Everest. In terms of women empowerment, it was self explanatory. So, for me, it was win-win-win!” Rahul said.

Calling the film a “journey of a little girl”, he said, “We shot in the hut where she used to live in Telangana. Now she doesn’t stay there. We took the journey from there – to where she learnt rock climbing – to when she learnt mountain climbing – to Sikkim – to Nepal – to Everest.”

Throwing light on the aspect that makes this film worth a watch, Rahul said, “It&’s extraordinary, it&’s inspiring, uplifting and it&’s a true story. If I had written a Bollywood story about a 13-year-old who climbed Everest – you guys would have made fun of me – how stupid, how ridiculous”.

Bollywood is brimming with biopics on several great personalities. So what makes Poorna different?

“I think most important thing about a biopic is that it should have the correct mix between authenticity and dramatization. If it doesn’t have that, then it fails,” Rahul said.

“Why one should watch this film? Because honestly, I think it&’s one of the most inspirational story that someone can remember – without any doubt in India&’s history – and in fact, the world&’s history,” he added.

“To think of a 13-year-old girl who climbs the Everest – it has never be done before and it will never be done again, because it changed the rules after she climbed,” he said, adding, “I would wish for the viewers to tell themselves, ‘My God, this is the most amazing journey I can imagine.’

The 49-year-old stars in the film as the girl&’s mentor RS Praveen Kumar.

When asked if it was challenging to act in the film while directing it, he was quick to deny it.

“It is just physically taxing. You just have to direct and then go to the makeup van and put on makeup and wear costume and stay in the same costume all day while acting and directing. But it&’s nowhere like climbing Mt Everest,” he quipped.

“Will I do it again? Yes. But do I prefer to only direct? Yes. It&’s always better to sit and just direct,” he also said.

“Do the things you want to do,” is the actor&’s mantra! In that respect, he feels Poorna is one of the film that he simply wished to do.

“It&’s an astonishing tale, and after making the film, I have and I will sleep like a log for quite a long time,” he joyfully said.