Anupam and Dev recall memories of 26/11

Ahead of its release in India, the film, Hotel Mumbai has already travelled to film festivals receiving applause worldwide.

On the night of 26/11, Mumbai was under terror attack by 10 gunmen, who targeted prime locations of the city.

When the film Hotel Mumbai was in works, actors Dev Patel and Anupam Kher were personally invested in the narrative of the film, as they recalled their personal memories of the tragedy. Moved by such tales, director

Anthony Maras was determined to show the courage of the commoners.

Anupam Kher says, “I was shooting in Bandra, when I heard that a gang war has begun at South Bombay. Then we learnt about the siege on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus station. It was horrifying. It was like when we watched the second plane crashing into the South Tower of the World Trade Centre in the 9/11 attacks in 2001. We felt the same helplessness because we couldn’t reach to our known people.”

Adding to Kher’s memories, Dev says,“To see that train station being attacked with high death toll and to see men just walk in and unload automatic gunfire was terrifying. So, when there was a talk of a film, I expressed my interest. I’ve been more vocal in the process of making this film than I have been with really anything that I’ve done so far to make sure that we do it right. The story is close to me as I was shooting here for a month, and the next thing was that my parents in London were looking at the TV and watching Mumbai burn. It was horrible.”

Presented by Zee Studios and Purpose Entertainment, Hotel Mumbai is set to be released on November 29 across India in multiple languages.

PHOTO: HTCS

PHOTO: HTCS Dev Patel and Anupam Kher in a scene from the film