Vivek Fernandes in Mumbai

Mansoor Khan is a close buddy of actor-producer Aamir Khan.

His professional association with Aamir dates back to the time they started their careers together -- Mansoor directed Aamir's debut hit Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. The two came together again in Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander. Mansoor moved on to Shah Rukh Khan in Josh, and Aamir moved on to Ashutosh Gowariker in Lagaan.

The two come together again in an Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited production.

Aamir's personal association with Mansoor dates back to before they were born! Their fathers -- Tahir Hussain and the late Nasir Husain -- are brothers.

The verdict on Mansoor's cousin's film Lagaan was out: it missed winning the Best Foreign Language Film at the 74th Annual Academy Awards trickled in. The Oscars were held this year at the newly built Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles on March 24.

Known for his pragmatic approach, Mansoor had this to say:

I haven't had a chance to speak with Aamir. Unfortunately, I couldn't speak with him before the awards ceremony either. But I did catch the live telecast on the morning of Monday, March 25.

There are always two elements at play when it comes to how we fell about issues such as these -- the rational aspect and the emotional. Of course I was disappointed when Lagaan lost out. It would have been tremendous if India were to have won.

But in all fairness, I can't say that No Man's Land was not a good film -- I haven't seen any of the other films nominated for Best Foreign Language. All I have is a rough idea of their plots.

When Aamir was down last week from the US, he said that No Man's Land was a very strong contender. And if Lagaan didn't win, it lost out to a worthy winner. That is what Aamir must have thought.

That might sound like I am being overly clinical. But let us not get carried away, saying that we lost because of lack of lobbying or things like that -- Aamir and Ashutosh did everything that was reasonably and ethically possible to get people to see their film.