Interview: Hotel Mumbai director Anthony Maras and stars Jason Isaacs and Nazanin Boniadi on the film’s inspirational story

The shocking events of the 2008 terrorist attack at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai come to the big screen, and Sky Cinema, this week with the arrival of Hotel Mumbai.  In the space of a handful of days, over 100 people lost their lives but while the film tells a tragic story, it also tells an inspiring one, about how the guests and staff came together to protect each other, sometimes losing their lives in the process.

Talking to The People’s Movies’ Freda Cooper, two of the film’s stars, Jason Isaacs and Nazanin Boniadi, reflect on its powerfully positive message about human nature and its strong political relevance. Both were 100% committed to the project and for Jason it meant having to postpone a long-awaited holiday with his family. They also recall how director Anthony Maras created a tense atmosphere on set for the siege sequences so that they were always in a state of high anxiety.

Link to video interview – Jason Isaacs and Nazanin Boniadi

For director Anthony Maras, the combination of the horrifying and inspirational was a big reason for choosing this as his first feature. He recalls being grabbed by people who were essentially strangers being so selfless, and talked to hundreds of people involved in the siege, survivors and witnesses, to ensure that the film reflected the events with respect and honesty. He also looks forward to his next project, which he’s currently writing, on a true story set in the southern states of America in the 1970s.

Link to video interview – Anthony Maras

Hotel Mumbai is a Sky Original Film, in cinemas and on Sky Cinema from 27 September.

Read our review of the film here.

About the Author

Freda Cooper

Editor

Freda is a Senior Writer at The People's Movies. A lifelong movie fan and a film critic for over ten years, Freda’s natural habitat is the darkened rooms frequented by fellow cineastes. She can also be found asking questions of some of the biggest names in the business – from Cate Blanchett to Daniel Craig or Mike Leigh to Pete Docter – or crafting reviews for a number of sites and publications, including The People’s Movies. And listeners to BBC Local Radio can catch her views on the latest releases. She always – and probably always will – cite The Third Man as her favourite film of all time. Her top ten? That’s a moveable feast …..

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