Food for the Filmmaker : Director-Actor Ram on his Favourite spots in Chennai

You are what you eat goes the saying. Well we are not sure if this true or not but we do believe that food helps you get inspired. It can feed more than your belly. Having a good meal can put you in a good mood and a good mood is definitely needed to get the creative juices flowing.

Director-Actor Ram discovered all his favourite eateries in Chennai only after he started to work for the film industry. During the long work shifts around the city and after them at the wee hours of the night he would search for and find places that would serve him and his crew fresh food that tasted like it was home made.

Here are a few of the places the critically acclaimed and National Award winning director loves :

Koyambedu, near the Airport : This place has so many little eateries that they are too many to name(and many of them don’t have names) “You can get food round-the-clock in areas around the airport and Koyambedu bus terminus. I know of a place where you get piping hot pongal and chutney at 3.30 am in Koyambedu” says Ram.There is also a gentleman who serves neatly packed vegetable biryani and tomato rice at Koyambedu bus stand for night travellers he says.

Balaajee Bhavan in T Nagar serves hot kesari and pongal at 5.30 am.

Kaattu Chicken or Uppukari is also a dish he came to love after joining the film industry. It is a very popular dish among Assistant Directors and is a Kodambakkam speciality. “Chicken is sautéed with onion, red chilli and salt. ADs can’t afford mutton, but when they feel like eating meat, this is what they prepare, as it does not cost much, can be cooked fast, and requires fewer ingredients,” he explaines.

Being a tea lover, Ram found the perfect tea for him at a small teashop in Kotturpuram, near Nandanam extension where the tea master adds herbs to the black tea.

If you are working in Chennai, in the film industry or not, take a chance and head out to find such local wonders thatare there right around the corner. That is where all the true flavour lies, and who knows? Inspiration may hit you from just a single bite.

Ram is an Indian film director, who works in Tamil cinema. After assisting Hindi directors Rajkumar Santoshi and working under Balu Mahendra, he made his directorial debut with Kattradhu Thamizh (2007), which fetched him strong critical acclaim. His second film Thanga Meengal (2013) also won critical praise and three National Film Awards.