‘The beauty of Hyderabad is undoubtedly in the old city streets and the true authentic Hyderabadi food-Entertainment News , Firstpost

Filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor

Nagesh Kukunoor believes that the great thing about Hyderabad lies within the previous metropolis and in Trendy Love Hyderabad we get to see a good quantity of each the previous and the brand new. In an unique interview with Firstpost, he mentions that there isn’t any comparability to the Hyderabad he knew means again in 1997 when he shot Hyderabad Blues versus the Hyderabad now. He wished to provide the remainder of India a real sampling of the highest twenty dishes of Hyderabad by way of Trendy Love Hyderabad.

Excerpts of the interview:

How a lot of Hyderabad can we get to see in Trendy Love Hyderabad?

I might say an affordable bit. In any anthology you’ve about thirty odd minutes and I believe we had been intelligent sufficient to choose six totally different tales which allowed us to showcase as a lot of Hyderabad as doable. However I wished to indicate among the iconic places in Trendy Love Hyderabad. I believe you’re going to get to see a good bit of the previous in addition to the brand new. We did a fairly good job of protecting the previous metropolis. My mother and father nonetheless dwell in the identical home that I used to be born in. The whole lot in regards to the place is extraordinarily related and I nonetheless stroll the identical streets at this time. So, I’m nonetheless a Hyderabadi boy.

How a lot has your Hyderabad modified since your Hyderabad Blues?

There’s completely no comparability to the Hyderabad I knew means again in 1997 after I shot Hyderabad Blues versus the Hyderabad proper now. Its dramatically totally different primarily as a result of the town has exploded on all of the peripheries- east, west, north and it’s ironic that lots of people who come to Hyderabad and the Gachibowli and Kondapalli are such fabulous locations nonetheless.

For most individuals Hyderabad is all about Charminar, how a lot significance does Charminar maintain to you?

Charminar and all of the older components of the town that I grew up in and clearly there needs to be some nostalgic ties in any other case the viewers are usually not going to understand it in any respect. However once more fashionable Indian cities are all alike. There actually isn’t any distinguishable function.

What are the adjustments that occurred with the break up of Andhra Pradesh to the town of Hyderabad?

There was not a lot monstrous demographic shift with AP splitting into Telangana. However clearly Hyderabad now’s slowly type of regaining its Telangana roots. In a really attention-grabbing means the older a part of Hyderabad is returning to its earlier Telangana roots that I sort of grew up in. Having mentioned that, the guests are usually not going to see any drastic adjustments in Hyderabad. They are going to see it as one of many bigger metros in India. So, you’re going to get every little thing ranging from the highest notch eating places that you can see in any giant metropolis. However the great thing about Hyderabad is undoubtedly within the previous metropolis streets and the true genuine Hyderabadi khaana with biryani being one of many pillars on which Hyderabad really stands.

 On directing three of the quick movies of the anthology Trendy Love Hyderabad…

Since I did the writing together with my co-writers for all of the episodes, I type of have the take and one in every of these was attempting to shoot three of the tales with three very distinctive backgrounds. My Pandemic Associate is the one with Revathi and Nithya Menon and it talks a couple of mom and daughter who’re locked in a Hyderabadi dwelling through the pandemic and the way the story progresses. You realise what has occurred prior to now and the way the 2 of them reconcile their relationship. One of the best a part of the story was really taking the New York Occasions article and set it towards the Muslim backdrop as a result of one of many cool issues in India is that there are numerous Muslims scattered to each state and so they communicate the native language fluently be it Guntur, Vijayawada. I used to be in a position to make use of that background and the opposite essential private curiosity I had was the truth that this story utterly showcases the Hyderabadi delicacies. I had a blast with the meals designers on the units and the Hyderabad delicacies.

The Hyderabadi delicacies and the relation of meals with movies. How a lot do you assume that can attraction to the viewers?

Meals movie is actually not a style in India. Berlin really has a separate set of movies on meals and I’m typically fascinated by it and have really written a number of scripts on it. However nothing really bore fruit so this was my alternative to truly helped me work in that facet. And clearly being from Hyderabad, Hyderabadi meals is high on my listing. I really wished to provide the remainder of India a real sampling of our high twenty dishes.

Inform us in regards to the well-known Hyderabadi biryani.

The Hyderabadi biryani itself is arguably one essentially the most tough dishes that you may prepare dinner and it’s the solely biriyani that’s cooked with uncooked meat. It’s cooked on the similar time with the rice and spices. So the dum ka biryani that everybody talks about is kachche gosht ki biriyani. We additionally had Lukhmi and Haleem after all as you’ll be able to by no means escape the Haleem. We had Khubani Ka Meetha and much extra. We additionally did numerous the Hyderabadi kebabs. Nithya had turned vegetarian a number of years earlier than the shoot, however for a few days I made her eat some meat. Not that she was complaining, however I made her eat some meat in order that the movie has the true flavour of Hyderabad.

What’s your opinion on the OTT growth?

Take into consideration this the normal method to turn out to be a director or author in our occasions was to undergo the entire strategy of you being an apprentice below somebody, you’re employed below somebody and also you spend an excellent eight to 10 years of your life earlier than you get a break.  As soon as this OTT growth occurred, simply consider all the youngsters who bought a break immediately. I really feel it really democratised the method. It’s fabulous the truth that so many individuals are getting an opportunity to direct and eventually we see writers are getting their due which had been utterly side-lined when Bollywood dominated earlier than the OTT got here in.

The magic of anthologies in India is usually restricted to movie competition viewing audiences. How a lot has it picked up among the many lots?

I do agree that in India, the viewers nonetheless wants to come back a great distance in accepting anthologies in film theatre. In reality, numerous these OTTs are extraordinarily tentative about giving the go forward for anthologies. Everyone seems to be testing the waters in another way. The distinction is that due to an excellent product like Trendy Love Amazon was completely assured of transferring this undertaking forward. However nonetheless the digital platform too can be very hesitant about greenlighting anthologies.

Is Bollywood shedding its swag to south movies?

We all the time had good movies, nevertheless it will depend on who does the advertising and marketing job finest and the numbers work out. I imply Baahubali would have been nothing had it not been dubbed correctly in Hindi and launched by Karan Johar. However as soon as that occurred it simply opened the doorways and folks realised that there’s a real pan Indian viewers. After all earlier than Baahubali the smaller south heroes who had been making their industrial movies had been getting dubbed in UP. It had a really attention-grabbing market that was not mainstream, however had an enormous viewers. I really feel traits come, traits go, issues survive. Proper now the flavour of the yr are the south movies. There’s a tendency to membership all of the movies collectively within the South as South Indian movies. However all of the movies from the totally different South Indian states have its very personal distinctive flavour which individuals want to know.

 What’s your favorite Hyderabadi reminiscence?

Each Hyderabad reminiscence circles again to meals. So, I provides you with one. There was a script that I used to be writing utilizing the Hyderabadi delicacies because the backdrop and it was good twenty years in the past. One of many actually previous Hyderabadi cooks is a Nawab referred to as Mehboob Alam Khan and he has cooked for Presidents of various international locations and is a Hyderabadi meals knowledgeable. In the future I bought an invitation from him by way of a good friend and I landed up in denims and T-shirt. However it was a correct Nawabi Dawaat which I didn’t know and I used to be feeling completely misplaced. However quick ahead to the principle a part of the story, the meals bought laid out and to me that meal ranks as in all probability the most effective meal that I’ve eaten in my life. It had dishes which we have now by no means heard of. There have been particular recipes which Mehboob Alam Khan had learnt from his mom and there have been dishes I had by no means heard of. That meal to me will in all probability be my fondest reminiscence.