After screening The Hundred-Foot Journey in LA, we got the chance to sit down with Manish Dayal, the leading actor in the movie and chat. Oh and I also got to take a selfie with him.

Leanette Fernandez selfie with Manish Dayal

I must say that Manish Dayal is super sweet, funny, passionate about acting (and this film)…and he was quite handsome! Our time with him seemed to go so fast but here’s what he had to say about the film, working with Helen Mirren, meeting Oprah and how Jurassic Park influenced his life…

What’s The Hundred-Foot Journey about?

This is a story about a displaced family that has to sort of find their way in this new place and sort of overcome all these obstacles culturally, racially…in every way.

What’s the message you want everyone to walk away with?

I hope people feel or walk away with that in order to achieve something great you have to go after life’s uncertainty. I think that is what I believe this movie is about. It’s about going into the unknown and not knowing what is gonna happen. Going after life’s uncertainty and committing yourself to a higher purpose. That’s what I think this movie’s about.

What’s it like working with Helen Mirren?

First I should tell you that she’s hilarious, and she has a very, very, crass sense of humor. I think that’s something we had a lot in common. So we ended up just laughing all the time. She was telling me stories about her life and how she got started in this business and so it was good to learn from her. Also when we were working, I could see how she prepares, what her process was like and that was also really cool. So it was an amazing experience.

She also told me something that I won’t forget, which was when you pick movies to do, you should just pick them based on how much fun you’re gonna have. So I thought that was really good advice.

How was the chemistry between you and Marguerite?


Well, you tell me. [LAUGHTER]. I think it was hot and spicy too. We definitely became good friends. I think we did have very good chemistry because we were friends. We just became friends fast because of her sense of humor, she’ll make any joke and she will say any thing you can imagine and I love that about her. I thought she was just very off the cuff and we just laughed a lot, and we became sort of pranksters. It was fun. I think that translated into on screen.

Also, I think what made working with her unique was any time I had a scene with Charlotte I never prepared really. I just knew what I was gonna say and I understood the tone of the scene and the objectives and things like that but I never really worked before shooting because when we were shooting it was just like the weirdest things could happen and we just had to roll with it. That’s what made our scenes really alive and I think pumped with energy. With the other actors it was a little more planned and I had to really think about the beats and where things moved, where we’re starting, where we’re ending.

How did you feel about the interracial aspect?

I would have to say two things about that. One, I have no complaints about kissing Charlotte. [LAUGHTER] She’s a French model.

The second thing, I thought about that. But, you know, the one thing that I’ve been really lucky to do in my career is I’ve been able to play an Indian guy in an American experience or in a western experience and that’s something really unique for south Asians. We’re a very growing, fast growing immigrant community…but we haven’t gotten to a point where we are represented in film and TV on the mainstream level. So for me it was a real privilege to sort of be a part of that movement because an Indian and white relationship is something we don’t see all the time.

I did it on 90210. I don’t know many other story lines on TV or in film on the mainstream level that have that. So I’ve been a part of that twice. I think that it is a reward and it is privilege. It also is something that I hope becomes more common. So all in all it was good. It was great. No complaints.

Did you meet Oprah?

I did meet Oprah and yes, she’s really amazing. She’s all the things that you know about her…she’s that much more incredible. She’s very giving and generous but, most specifically, is how generous she is with her knowledge and her knowledge of the world…so I did get to spend some time with her. It’s clear to me…why she’s connected to this story…It’s a real immigrant story and I think that that’s why she connected to it. These are the stories that she wants to tell and I think she did it. Hopefully.

Did you read the book?

I read it twice before and I always had it under my arm when I was shooting because if I was unsure about something that I was doing in the movie I would refer to the book.

What surprised you most about French and Indian food culture?

I went into it thinking that the French culture and the Indian culture are completely different. There’s nothing about these two cultures that are similar, until I started working on the movie…I realized they’re actually distinctly similar unlike any other culture in the world because of their appreciation for food. They both have this sort of like razor sharp appreciation for it that I don’t think any other culture has that.

I think the interesting part is that a French kitchen is really structured. It’s very formulaic. There’s a formula for everything. There’s a way to do everything, there’s a way to stand and everyone has a skill in the kitchen…there’s a hierarchy there that’s really respected and it’s really quite amazing to watch how everyone follows the rules.

Then in an Indian kitchen, it’s not like that at all. It’s about who’s gonna get this thing cooked, and how are we gonna make it happen? Both yield great tasting food. But the cultures in these kitchens is so different and that’s one of the most interesting things I learned.

They still have the same sort of razor sharp appreciation for cooking and food. It’s just done in a very different way.

What was your favorite dish on set?

The beef bourguignon. That was good. I killed it. [LAUGHTER] I ate so much of it that day. I remember it was a scene that I was shooting before lunch broke and afterwards, I couldn’t even eat lunch because I ate so much of it. It was really good.

How did you start acting?

I didn’t go to drama school or anything like that…Helen didn’t go to drama school either, so that’s something we sort of connected on. I saw Jurassic Park and I knew I wanted to be in the business. [LAUGHTER] I saw Jurassic Park and that was it…the minute I saw that movie a light switch went on for me in my head and my life has never been the same since…my mom, she has a lot to do with my life and she sort of picked up on my interest and gave me unwavering support my whole life. She encouraged me to take a film class ’cause I wanted to be a director and producer at that point. I took a film class, and I was just jazzed. I was in love with it.

There’s nothing else I wanted to do until someone asked me to be in front of the camera for a project…and it was a really surreal experience, one I won’t forget because I didn’t know what I was doing. I was confused as hell. I was nervous and I felt like I was like falling off a cliff or something. I didn’t know what I was doing. But I understood it. I definitely understood it if that makes any sense but I also didn’t know what I was doing and I was having a lot of fun. So after that I was hooked and that’s where I sort of started on the whole path to be an actor.

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While I hadn’t seen him in anything I have watched (I guess I was living under a rock) I assume that after this movie, we’ll be seeing a lot more of him (or at least I hope so).

Group Photo with Manish Dayal and Leanette Fernandez

The Hundred-Foot Journey is now in theaters, so be sure to check it out and let me know what you think.