Today's Special

This is one of the most underrated movies that have been centred around Indians living in the west. I do not understand why this title has been placed in the Comedy Genre. This is really a spiritual insight into what cooking and food really is, and also what value it can provide in our life and relationships. There are several quotes (especially from Naseeruddin Shah) that may sound very cliche but are thought provoking and hard hitting. This is an absolute must-watch for anyone looking to give meaning to their life.

The only thing that I did not liked was that the entire movie is in English, which was complete unnecessary and unauthentic.

This is an enjoyable light and fun comedy to watch. Nothing too deep. It has cliches, a bit cheesy at moments but still very watchable with good laughs. The cast is pretty good and music is catchy.

Samir (Aasif Mandvi) is a sous chef at an upscale modern New York restaurant cooking western cuisine. He works tirelessly and the head chef takes all the credit. When his expected promotion to head chef is taken away, he quits and decides to go to Paris to work for one of the greats. When his father has a heart-attack, he has to take over the family restaurant and hires a taxi driver (Naseeruddin Shah) to be his new cook. He falls for single mom Carrie (Jess Weixler).

Aasif is playing it with a bit too much anger. That particular spice can be off-putting if there is too much of it in the meal. He needs to dial it back a dash. There is some fine food porn early on but I'm surprised that the movie doesn't do more with the Indian cooking. The most memorable part of the cooking is the live chickens. That brings up the evolution of Samir's food. When the hipsters walk away from Samir's dad, I thought the movie would have Samir add Indian flavors to his western cooking to create a new food fusion. It wouldn't be a revolutionary idea but at least, it would look like it. I figured that his new old world cooking would be the talk of the town and overshadow his old boss with the 25 year old protégé. That's the move. Everything else is rather conventional despite its ethnic flavors. The flavors are interesting but it needs something more.

This is a heartfelt, amusing film starring Aasif Mandvi, mostly known for his work as a Daily Show correspondent. It's not quite as funny as I expected from a comedian of his caliber; not because he tried and failed, but because it's more of a quirky story of a personal journey. But there were definitely a good number of lines that were so funny I had to repeat them out loud to myself. It's a bit slow in the beginning (could have used some tighter editing), but give it some time to build. Naseeruddin Shah is magic, as always. If you know his work, nothing more needs to be said. If not, watch this and enjoy. (And I gotta say, I think he looks damn good for his age!) It is not a coincidence that the song Akbar (Shah) is listening to when Samir (Mandvi) first meets him is from a classic Hindi film in which the character says that although all his clothes come from other countries, his heart is still Indian. Samir has tried to cut himself off from Indian traditions, even while his parents are attempting to shove them down his throat; the more they push, the more he pulls away, and vise versa. Throughout the film, with help from unexpected places, he learns to reconcile his western life with his heritage, and appreciate where he came from.

The excellent comedic talent, Aasif Mandvi, plays a lovable character named Samir in a very funny comedy about Samir's life in New York. He works as a sous chef in a nice restaurant with the hope of becoming a full chef in his boss's newly opening restaurant. When that position fails to materialize for him, Samir quits in a huff and decides to move to Paris for an unpaid position with a famous chef there.

Not too surprisingly, it turns out he needs to stay in New York because of a family crisis (I won't say what) and Samir's help is needed with the family business. A thoroughly delightful story follows that is full of heart and full of humor, for a totally enjoyable experience! Highly recommended!