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Directed and produced by Zachary Coffin, the film is about an Indian-American debutante in search of her father, the plant manager on duty the night of the gas spill disaster. Ash, who is also the executive producer of the film, will play the role of Jasmine Singh. This is Coffin's debut feature film. He has earlier been an assistant director for a 1998 release —Simple Gifts.

Talking about the project Coffin said, "I want to make a film that's as world class as Gandhi. Ash and I had agreed to do this project in December 2004. The script took time to develop and now I'm aiming to start shooting from January, 2008. There are schedules in Hollywood in India. There is a huge amount of pre-production work in the film as well."

Ash, Coffin insists, is perfect for the role. "It's a very difficult role and there is no other Indian actor who can play it. From the very outset, it was agreed upon that she would act as well as be the executive producer of the film," says the director. Talking about the character, he says, "The character is fictional but her experiences are based on real issues."

Coffin hopes that the changing dynamics of Ash's marital status will not change her commitment towards the film, the working title of which is Bhopal Movie. "The perception of an actor giving up her career post-wedding is only prevalent in India. In Hollywood, most of the actors are married. Hence, Ash's changed marital status is a non-issue for me."

Other members of the cast include Anupam Kher, Irrfan, Shobana, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Kumud Mishra and Nagesh Bhonsle. Legendary theatre personality Habib Tanvir is also doing a cameo in the film. Having directed a play titled Garam Hawa, it was only a "blessing" for Coffin to have got Tanvir on board as an advisor too.

When AT got in touch with Irrfan, he said, "The director has taken my consent. Due to legal issues, I'm not supposed to name my character." Shobana also confirmed the news from Chennai, saying, "It's been a while since I acted in Hindi films. I have signed this film."

Though Ash herself was unavailable for comments, her secretary Hari Singh confirmed that she had earlier committed to do this film. "She will be returning end-May and then complete Jodhaa Akbar. I know about this Bhopal film and artistes and producers must make more and more such films based on real-life. Although she had given her consent, I need to check out the revised policies after the wedding."