New Delhi- Narendra Kumar is a 12 year old boy from Jain Dera slum.
He lives with his struggling parents Padma and Tulsi, who labour endlessly, to make ends meet for the family and his younger siblings Ritu and Aman.
Inside their mud hut, there are two beds which is supposed to fit all of them, two plastic chairs, a very old fridge and small television. And they have a small kitchenette right outside the main hut.
All these does not stop Narendra from dreaming big.
He wants to be a pilot.
The eldest in his family, this seventh standard is not your everyday young boy.
Slightly built, he is tough like a man. I suppose it's because his parents rely on him so much.
Narendra is the main protagonist in our documentary.
His is a story of the younger generation in this slum, who are trying to break free from the bondage to poverty.
They are the descendants of the bonded labourers, who are now rehabilitated in Jain Dera.
Unlike their grandparents and their parents, they go to school and have dreams for their future.
According to Narendra's mum, Padma, who also features in our documentary, things have changed.
She explained that at her son's age, she was already told that she would get married if she dropped out of school, so she did not even dream of becoming something in life.
Her story is similar to all those in her generation, who had no dreams.
The only thing they knew was to stay home if they were women, and for the men, it was work,work, work.
For the past two months my friends and I have been visiting Jain Dera slum to film our documentary.
Our frequent trips in an effort to make them trust us did not go in vain.
Despite their hardships, the people were always smiling and generously shared what little they had with us.
Everytime we go there, Padma was always whipping up something for us to eat.
Accepting her food for the first time was a very tough decision for me, as a film maker.
I knew that they did not have much, and she was just being courteous.
But at the same time, I needed her to trust us and be comfortable when we were around.
According to our lecturer, no matter how hard we tried, they would always see us differently.
She said that it would be like Anil Ambani wanting to make a documentary on us.
But I know that it was the Fijian in me that made me accept that food and attach to them.
So when were there, I would make the most of the rajma, chawal, puri, matar paneer and the masala chai.
The rest of my group were content with the idea that I was accepting the food on the group's behalf.
For our documentary, we decided to take Narendra, his mum, his siblings Ritu and Aman and his friends Bhiru and Sabha to the Indira Ghandi International Airport runaway so they could see real planes.
On our way to the airport, Padma told me that this was the first time the children, except Narendra, had gone out of the slum.
So, I happily volunteered to be their tour guide.
Even Padma and my friend Anindita, who was in the same vehicle as us, were surprised with my knowledge of Delhi.
Staying here for more than two years, this is home. I'm proud to say that I sure do know my way around!
The children enjoyed themselves seeing planes taxi off the runway or landing.
The big smiles on their small faces said it all.
They were just as excited as we were.
After shooting for two days, it was time to head back to Delhi.
But something Padma said to me really touched my heart. "Mere, we will miss you, please come back and see us, even before you go back to your country,
try and come back to visit."
Those words made me realise the difference we brought into their lives.
I remember how she would chase me into the main hut, during our first visits, whenever I ventured into her kitchennette while she was preparing food.
But that changed towards the end. I was allowed into the kitchenette whenever I wanted.
Although it was only for two months, the friendships and bonds formed with the people of Jain Dera slum, especially with Padma and her family, are for life.
We all agreed that regardless of the outcome of this documentary, it was the experience that really mattered.