Oct 19, Mumbai (IANS): Marketing an independent film takes a lot of time as it requires the basic understanding of pitching films to the right people, Guneet Monga, one of the country's popular independent film producers, said here Saturday.

"I have been producing films for a few years now. But my first film festival (experience) was with 'That Girl in Yellow Boots' at Venice International Film Festival. I remember asking the festival director where I can find buyers in the market. Who are they and how does one start?" Monga said at the ongoing Mumbai Film Festival.

Speaking at a panel discussion on 'Alternate Distribution Plan for Indie Films", she recalled: "I was told it takes at least three years to know people. It was a time-consuming process, but it helped me a lot to be constantly in the market with films from our company. I constantly kept meeting people on behalf of our films."

Monga is the co-founder of Sikhya Entertainment and CEO of Anurag Kashyap Films Pvt Ltd, which she joined in 2009.

"It is a slow process of starting to know people, understanding how the market works and delivering what is needed, and to understand the know-how of taking Indian independent films to global markets... it takes time," said Monga, known for being associated with films such as "Shaitan", "Gangs of Wasseypur" and "The Lunchbox".

"While treading a new market, it is also important to understand what their likes and dislikes are because our films are of a different scale. It is difficult because international markets are handled by sales agents. I spent so much travelling around the world and meeting these agents," she added.

Monga was also joined by French distributor Isabella Dubar, angel investor Nandini and film critic Shubhra Gupta.