“All we did was eat and in between, we shot a film,” laughs Raja Krishna Menon, over the telephone. The director who is still soaring high with the success of the Akshay Kumar starrer Airlift, is all set to serve up Chef , a movie that has Saif Ali Khan in the lead. A remake of Jon Favereu’s Hollywood film by the same name, Raja says his Bollywood version isn’t a remake of the Favereu movie. Instead, he has adapted the film by adding masala, a blend of food, emotions and travel, to suit the local palate.
A still from Raja Krishna Menon’s Chef
Food, says Raja, is the glue that binds people together. “Food, to me, is also not just about flavours and aromas; it’s about memories and emotions,” he adds. And food is explored at its best in the film, be it appam and meen curry from a toddy shop in Kochi or the aloo tikkis from the streets of Chandni Chowk.
Saif plates the various flavours of the country through the character he plays in the film - Roshan Kalra, a chef who rediscovers his passion for food. His “food journey” takes him from New York to Kerala and then on to Goa, Amritsar, Delhi and Mumbai. “I don’t think there has been an Indian movie made which celebrates the rich culinary heritage of our country.”
Raja Krishna Menon
He was surprised when his crew, largely from Mumbai, said they were unfamiliar with Kerala cuisine. “They had never tasted idiyappam, uppumavu, kappa and meen curry. But when we shot at a toddy shop, the crew feasted on the local food and had toddy.
“Although I have heard you haven’t had a real aloo tikki until you have had one from Chandni Chowk, I was sceptical. I now echo the same. Amritsar’s lassi is extremely refreshing. In a way, the film was illuminating for all of us as we discovered the country through its food.”
Although Saif had played a chef in Salaam Namaste , he had to train with top chefs for several months for Raja’s film. “I wanted him to live the character. I wanted his body language to be that of a chef. He needed to hold a knife right, chop an onion right, handle the pressure cooker-like environment of a kitchen right...” So, did Saif’s training in the kitchen pay off? “Yes, he looked every inch the role in the movie. In fact, he invited a few of us home one day and served us spaghetti aglio e olio. It was really good.”
While Favereu’s film revolved around food, Raja chose to focus more on relationships. “Roshan has a strained relationship with his son, Armaan, as his job keeps him away. He is not able to give Armaan the time and attention needed. As he tries to get to know his son better, he keeps asking himself, what really the role of a parent is. It’s a question most parents ask. Are you supposed to be a friend, a guide, a disciplinarian or a mix of all three? Saif himself became a father at a very young age and was too young to appreciate or understand fatherhood with his kids Sara and Ibrahim. His realisation of his relationship with his children has helped him explore the subject in the film. I feel he is lucky he is getting a second chance with Taimur,” says Raja, who picked Saif for the role for his “approachable and vulnerable” look, which he felt the character needed.
Padmapriya plays Saif’s former wife, Radha, in the film. “Radha is a Bharatanatyam dancer who runs a dance school in Kochi. Bollywood has seen only glimpses of Kerala in songs. I wanted Kerala as a character. Kerala is not just beautiful in terms of landscape, it is also rich in food and culture. It is also one of the few places in the country that is not embarrassed about its traditional attire. Women still wear settu mundu and men walk around in mundu.” That a divorced couple can be civil and remain friends is also explored in the film.
So, what next? “I am busy finishing a script I have been working on. I should hopefully start shoot of the script early next year.” Chef also stars Svar Kamble, Dinesh Prabhakar and Chandan Roy Sanyal. The film is produced by T-Series, Bandra West Picture [Raja’s production house] and Abundantia Entertainment.
Chef will hit theatres on October 6.
