Not changing gears, adding something new: Chef Vikas Khanna on feature directorial debut

Michelin-star chef Vikas Khanna, who is making his directorial debut with "The Last Color", says he never planned his foray into films and it all happened organically.

The celebrated chef said he has no plans to pursue direction full-time.

"I am not changing gears, I am just adding something. It just came honestly. I had no aspirations to be a filmmaker. I am doing it for the love of art. If something moves I do it. I don't know what will inspire me next," Khanna, who has made documentaries in the past, told PTI.

The film "The Last Color", based on a book of the same name by Khanna, revolves around the Supreme Court order against an age-old tradition of not allowing widows in Vrindavan to play Holi.

Khanna's visit to Vrindavan in 2011 for his book 'Utsav: A Culinary Epic of Indian Festivals' gave birth to "The Last Color", which now has turned into a film.

"In Vrindavan while I was just crossing by a lane I saw hundreds of widows standing on the balcony, who were dressed in white while the streets, the walls and other people were in colors. This is so stark. As a chef, everything in my life has been about colors."
"Over the course of time, the book titled 'The Last Color' took a shape. Lot of people then had advised me not to write a fiction novel and that I should rather concentrate on writing books on cooking."
"We started scouting for directors we did not find anyone who felt the pain and also sensitivity to color, so I came on board."
"Like, how we decorate a restaurant and a dish similarly a film's scene are decorated with story, performances, etc. The dish that is ready on the table is just like a shot captured onscreen."
Khanna, who has taken the Indian cuisine on a global platform with his high-end restaurant Junoon in New York, says, "There is lot of food in the film but we are not keeping it in the forefront. I have touched upon lot of things in this film like caste system, food, it is all inter-layered."