Prakash Jha's hot potato.

The politically aware director treads on adangerous territory' yet again with his take on reservations in education.

Pre-release is an edgy time for most filmmakers but somewhat more so for Prakash Jha, maker of what we journalists love to call ahard-hitting' films. Jha has rarely had it easy getting his films released and his latest Aarakshan, a film about education and the reservation system, has been no different, as you are perhaps aware, with every TV channel having debated the issue.

Of course, Jha is an old hand at this and he also knows exactly what he is getting into. Any filmmaker who picks up a controversial or politically sensitive subject in India is not only prepared for trouble, but the controversy could well be part of the package.

This is not to doubt Jha's motives though. He is one of our most politically aware directors and even stood (unsuccessfully though) for the Lok Sabha elections from Bihar in 2004 and 2009. Aarakshan and the subject of caste are ideas that have been brewing in his mind for quite some time. Before the release of his previous …