For celebrity chef-turned-filmmaker Vikas Khanna, directing the acclaimed actor Shabana Azmi in his upcoming film, Imaginary Rain, is more than just a career milestone. He describes it as the “greatest highlight” of his life.
The movie, based on his 2023 novel of the same name, will see Azmi play the role of a MasterChef in Manhattan, rediscovering her roots in India after a personal tragedy. The film also features Prateik Patil.
Vikas, who has also written the film, explores themes of grief, family, and rediscovering one's passion through Indian cuisine.
“My next movie is coming out in a few months. It's called Imaginary Rain, it's with Shabana Azmi, A R Rahman (music), and Prateik. It's about a chef in New York. I think it's my life's best work,” he told PTI in an interview.
“And to direct Shabana Azmi has been one of the biggest privileges of my life. I'm very proud of it. For me to convince her (Azmi) to play this role possibly will be one of the greatest highlights of my life,' the Chef-filmmaker, who made his directorial debut with the 2019 film, The Last Color, starring Neena Gupta, said.
Vikas said he has been working actively towards releasing Imaginary Rain.
“I'm so busy with Bungalow (his restaurant in New York) that I've no breathing space. I'm stuck inside the restaurant 24x7, but now it's my big mission to have this movie find home. I promise you that you might have never seen a food movie like this in your life before. This is the best work of my life,” he said.
Talking about his memorable experience of hosting actors Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh recently at his restaurant, Vikas said it was a privilege to have the star couple at Bungalow in New York.
A video surfaced online showing Deepika making modak under Vikas’s guidance.
“When Deepika and Ranveer were going to come, we had to keep figuring out the dates, as at the restaurant, it was impossible for us to get one seat. But it was a privilege (to have them). New Year was happening, and every day we gave a mithai (sweet), and Deepika helped us to make the mithai that day, it was 'Anar ke modak',” Vikas said.
“It is my way of exploring and expanding the vision of Indian food, like when they (actors) are making modak, everybody, including kids are going to start making modak. It's putting a new breath of life into our traditions. I'm very proud that God has given me the opportunity and the stage where I can do this beautifully, organically and feed into a celebration of India,” he said.
Vikas is thrilled to be back as one of the judges on the competitive cooking reality series, MasterChef India 2026, which will premiere from January 5 on Sony Entertainment Television and SonyLIV. It will also feature Chef Ranveer Brar and Kunal Kapoor as the judges.
