Today's Special (2009 film)
Encyclopedia
Today's Special is a 2009 independent comedy film loosely inspired by Aasif Mandvi's Obie Award
-winning play, Sakina's Restaurant. The film was directed by David Kaplan
(Year of the Fish
). The script was adapted by Aasif Mandvi
(The Daily Show
) and Jonathan Bines (Jimmy Kimmel Live
), and stars Mandvi, Madhur Jaffrey
(Shakespeare Wallah
), Bollywood
actor Naseeruddin Shah
(Monsoon Wedding
), Harish Patel
(Run Fatboy Run
), Kevin Corrigan
, Dean Winters
, and Ajay Naidu
. The film was developed and produced by Nimitt Mankad of Inimitable Pictures, and Lillian LaSalle of Sweet 180.
The film's world premiere took place at the London Film Festival
on October 16, 2009 and its U.S. premiere at the Paris Theater as the Opening Night of the MIAAC Film Festival (Mahindra Indo American Arts Festival). It played at the Mumbai Film Festival; the Palm Springs International Film Festival
on January 15, 2010, where it won "Best of the Fest"; and was the Opening Night film at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
on March 11, 2010.
), a sous chef at an upscale New York restaurant, becomes frustrated with his boss (Dean Winters
) and quits. His dreams of studying French cooking in France are shattered after his father becomes ill and he must take over his family's Indian restaurant, Tandoori Palace. Samir's knowledge of Indian cooking is limited until he meets the larger than life gourmet chef and taxi driver Akbar (Naseeruddin Shah
). Samir's world is transformed via Akbar's cooking lessons, the magic of the masala and a beautiful co-worker, Carrie (Jess Weixler
). While his mother (Madhur Jaffrey
) tries to get him to settle down with a nice Indian girl and his father (Harish Patel
) is convinced he will amount to nothing, Samir, Akbar, and a kitchen staff of eccentric characters concoct the most magical and mouth watering dishes in what soon becomes the best little Indian restaurant in New York.
Obie Award
The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
-winning play, Sakina's Restaurant. The film was directed by David Kaplan
David Kaplan (filmmaker)
David Kaplan is the writer/director of several films based on fairy tales and folklore, including the feature film Year of the Fish , which premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival and was released theatrically in 2008....
(Year of the Fish
Year of the Fish
Year of the Fish is a 2008 American animated film based on Ye Xian, a ninth century Chinese variant of the fairy tale Cinderella, starring Tsai Chin , Randall Duk Kim, Ken Leung and An Nguyen...
). The script was adapted by Aasif Mandvi
Aasif Mandvi
Aasif Hakim Mandviwala , known professionally as Aasif Mandvi , is an American actor and comedian. He began appearing as an occasional contributing correspondent on The Daily Show on August 9, 2006. On March 12, 2007, he was promoted to a regular correspondent.-Early life and stage career:Mandvi...
(The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
) and Jonathan Bines (Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live
Jimmy Kimmel Live! is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and broadcast on ABC.The nightly hour-long show made its debut on January 26, 2003, following Super Bowl XXXVII. Jimmy Kimmel Live! is produced by Jackhole Productions in association with ABC Studios...
), and stars Mandvi, Madhur Jaffrey
Madhur Jaffrey
Madhur Jaffrey is an Indian actress and food writer who introduced the Western world to the many cuisines of India.- Personal life :...
(Shakespeare Wallah
Shakespeare Wallah
Shakespeare Wallah is a 1965 Merchant Ivory Productions film. The story and screenplay are by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. Madhur Jaffrey won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the 15th Berlin International Film Festival for her performance...
), Bollywood
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
actor Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
(Monsoon Wedding
Monsoon Wedding
* Originally featured in the Hindi film Loafer * Originally featured in the Hindi film Biwi No.1 -Awards:The movie won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival...
), Harish Patel
Harish Patel
Harish is an Indian actor. He has a relative called Himesh Patel, he is Tamwar in EastEnders. Although mainly associated with the stage, he has also appeared in comedy films and on television. He began performing at the age of seven, when he played both male and female parts in the Hindu epic...
(Run Fatboy Run
Run Fatboy Run
Run Fatboy Run is a 2007 British comedy film directed by David Schwimmer, written by Michael Ian Black and Simon Pegg, and starring Pegg, Dylan Moran, Thandie Newton, Harish Patel, India de Beaufort, and Hank Azaria...
), Kevin Corrigan
Kevin Corrigan
Kevin Fitzgerald Corrigan is an American actor who has appeared mostly in independent films and television since the 1990s.-Life and career:Corrigan was born in The Bronx, New York to an Irish-American father and a Puerto Rican mother...
, Dean Winters
Dean Winters
Dean Winters is an American actor, who has portrayed Ryan O'Reily on HBO's Oz, Johnny Gavin on FX Network's Rescue Me, and Dennis Duffy on NBC's 30 Rock...
, and Ajay Naidu
Ajay Naidu
Ajay Kalahastri Naidu is an American actor.Naidu was born in Evanston, Illinois He attended Evanston Township High School. As an actor, he trained with the American Repertory Theater's Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University.His first professional acting job was the film ...
. The film was developed and produced by Nimitt Mankad of Inimitable Pictures, and Lillian LaSalle of Sweet 180.
The film's world premiere took place at the London Film Festival
London Film Festival
The BFI London Film Festival is the UK's largest public film event, screening more than 300 features, documentaries and shorts from almost 50 countries. The festival, , currently in its 54th year, is run every year in the second half of October under the umbrella of the British Film Institute...
on October 16, 2009 and its U.S. premiere at the Paris Theater as the Opening Night of the MIAAC Film Festival (Mahindra Indo American Arts Festival). It played at the Mumbai Film Festival; the Palm Springs International Film Festival
Palm Springs International Film Festival
Palm Springs International Film Festival is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. It was started in 1989 and is held annually in January...
on January 15, 2010, where it won "Best of the Fest"; and was the Opening Night film at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival
The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival presented every March is the nation’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asian films, annually presenting approximately 130 works in San Francisco, Berkeley and San Jose, USA...
on March 11, 2010.
Plot
Samir (Aasif MandviAasif Mandvi
Aasif Hakim Mandviwala , known professionally as Aasif Mandvi , is an American actor and comedian. He began appearing as an occasional contributing correspondent on The Daily Show on August 9, 2006. On March 12, 2007, he was promoted to a regular correspondent.-Early life and stage career:Mandvi...
), a sous chef at an upscale New York restaurant, becomes frustrated with his boss (Dean Winters
Dean Winters
Dean Winters is an American actor, who has portrayed Ryan O'Reily on HBO's Oz, Johnny Gavin on FX Network's Rescue Me, and Dennis Duffy on NBC's 30 Rock...
) and quits. His dreams of studying French cooking in France are shattered after his father becomes ill and he must take over his family's Indian restaurant, Tandoori Palace. Samir's knowledge of Indian cooking is limited until he meets the larger than life gourmet chef and taxi driver Akbar (Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
). Samir's world is transformed via Akbar's cooking lessons, the magic of the masala and a beautiful co-worker, Carrie (Jess Weixler
Jess Weixler
Jessica "Jess" Weixler is an American actress, best known to date as the lead in the comedy-horror film Teeth and the comedy The Big Bad Swim...
). While his mother (Madhur Jaffrey
Madhur Jaffrey
Madhur Jaffrey is an Indian actress and food writer who introduced the Western world to the many cuisines of India.- Personal life :...
) tries to get him to settle down with a nice Indian girl and his father (Harish Patel
Harish Patel
Harish is an Indian actor. He has a relative called Himesh Patel, he is Tamwar in EastEnders. Although mainly associated with the stage, he has also appeared in comedy films and on television. He began performing at the age of seven, when he played both male and female parts in the Hindu epic...
) is convinced he will amount to nothing, Samir, Akbar, and a kitchen staff of eccentric characters concoct the most magical and mouth watering dishes in what soon becomes the best little Indian restaurant in New York.
Cast
- Aasif MandviAasif MandviAasif Hakim Mandviwala , known professionally as Aasif Mandvi , is an American actor and comedian. He began appearing as an occasional contributing correspondent on The Daily Show on August 9, 2006. On March 12, 2007, he was promoted to a regular correspondent.-Early life and stage career:Mandvi...
as Samir - Dean WintersDean WintersDean Winters is an American actor, who has portrayed Ryan O'Reily on HBO's Oz, Johnny Gavin on FX Network's Rescue Me, and Dennis Duffy on NBC's 30 Rock...
as Steve - Kevin CorriganKevin CorriganKevin Fitzgerald Corrigan is an American actor who has appeared mostly in independent films and television since the 1990s.-Life and career:Corrigan was born in The Bronx, New York to an Irish-American father and a Puerto Rican mother...
as Stanton - Naseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
as Akbar - Jess WeixlerJess WeixlerJessica "Jess" Weixler is an American actress, best known to date as the lead in the comedy-horror film Teeth and the comedy The Big Bad Swim...
as Carrie - Ajay NaiduAjay NaiduAjay Kalahastri Naidu is an American actor.Naidu was born in Evanston, Illinois He attended Evanston Township High School. As an actor, he trained with the American Repertory Theater's Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University.His first professional acting job was the film ...
as Munnamia - Kevin Breznahan as Freddie
- Harish PatelHarish PatelHarish is an Indian actor. He has a relative called Himesh Patel, he is Tamwar in EastEnders. Although mainly associated with the stage, he has also appeared in comedy films and on television. He began performing at the age of seven, when he played both male and female parts in the Hindu epic...
as Hakim - Amir Arison as Dr. Semaan
- Madhur JaffreyMadhur JaffreyMadhur Jaffrey is an Indian actress and food writer who introduced the Western world to the many cuisines of India.- Personal life :...
as Farrida
Awards
- Best of the Fest Award at the 2010 Palm Springs International Film FestivalPalm Springs International Film FestivalPalm Springs International Film Festival is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. It was started in 1989 and is held annually in January...
- Aasif MandviAasif MandviAasif Hakim Mandviwala , known professionally as Aasif Mandvi , is an American actor and comedian. He began appearing as an occasional contributing correspondent on The Daily Show on August 9, 2006. On March 12, 2007, he was promoted to a regular correspondent.-Early life and stage career:Mandvi...
- Best Actor Award at the Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council (MIAAC) Film Festival