Raj Singh Chaudhary impressed all with his acting in "Gulaal" all those years ago, but the response to his recent effort as a debutant director in "Shaadisthan" has been below expectations.

Chaudhary takes it in good spirits, saying one needs to take criticism in a positive way.

"You would always want everyone to like and appreciate your film, but you can't please everybody. Everyone has a point of view, be it the people involved in making the film or the audience. There is bound to be criticism and people who will not like your film. You will receive bouquets and brickbats, but you will have to take it in a positive way," he told IANS.

The writer-filmmaker says he was inspired by a true story to create the script of "Shaadisthan".

"Somebody I personally know, I had seen this happen very closely. In fact, (it happened) in my family. I was in school at that point of time but it stayed with me. I always wanted to tell this to the world that something like this happened and it is not right. The film is based on that but I have made it more cinematic and entertaining, so that it doesn't look preachy," he says.

Sharing his experience of shooting the road trip film, Chaudhary recalls: "We shot in several places like Udaipur and Ajmer in Rajasthan, Mumbai, Daman, Gujarat. It was lovely. The experience has been beautiful but challenging because we shot on a limited budget. We had some of the best actors and technicians working with us, and real-life musicians. Making this film, I realised being a good human being matters because only then people stand by you when you are trying to do something."

Quizzed who the film's target audience is, the director replied: "Anybody can watch this film, people from all age groups. It encompasses someone who thinks independently in a big city to someone in a village or a small town. The characters in the film are from all strata of society and all age groups. My target audience is everybody, but especially people from those places where this kind of thinking still exists, so that the message reaches them."

"Shaadisthan" features Kirti Kulhari, Medha Shankar, Rajan Modi and Nivedita Bhattacharya in key roles with Kay Kay Menon in a cameo.

The film streams on Disney+ Hotstar.