The Holy Cow
A successful corporate foreclosure exec faces a soul-searching dilemma when he inherits his dead father’s beloved, once-famous but now decrepit money pit of an Indian restaurant.
Starters
Mains
Ruthless Indian-American corporate exec Anwesh Agarwal thought he had it all… until he inherits his father’s restaurant, the once famous but now run-down ‘The Holy Cow’. Thanks to a misunderstanding on his father’s deathbed, Anwesh is compelled to return to New Jersey’s Little India and embark on the impossible task of restoring the crumbling curry house to its former glory… a journey that sees him turn his back on Wall Street’s corporate America, honor his father’s legacy and reconnect with his past & present.
Chef's Recommendations
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We know films and TV shows about food work. To all humans, food is primal, and due to this there’s always a market. With THE HOLY COW we can almost smell the food at times. A similar film THE HUNDRED FOOT JOURNEY attracted a stellar cast and crew and was a box office hit. - The Griffin Consultancy
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‘The Holy Cow’ can find itself on the next level of family drama, with the likes of Nicole Holofcener films, Noah Baumbauch, or any films that give a slice of life and explore how a few small characters make important changes in their lives. - The Script Lab
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There’s a compelling Indian-American angle to this story... this low-concept yet sneakily original idea could make for a refreshingly authentic film. - Slated
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This script has the elements of what could be a fascinating light drama about a man who inherits his father's failing restaurant and struggles to save his immigrant family's legacy - even if the audience doesn’t know its Paneer from its Pakoras. WeScreenplay
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(Copyright © Michael Normand, 2024)
• There’s clearly an audience for this film - stories centered on cooking are having a moment right now, and there’s an equal or greater hunger for stories that center the experiences of diverse characters. The Black List
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Neighborhood Recommendations
Excerpt from an interview in La Libertad magazine
La Libertad: Where did you get the idea for your new screenplay, The Holy Cow?
Michael: When I first started writing The Holy Cow, the story was set in Glasgow. My body and soul can’t last a week without Indian food… a throwback to student days when Sunday evening meant we Jewish boys would go to The Koh-i-Noor or The Shish Mahal, in the West End. The Chicken Tikka Masala had been voted "Britain’s Favorite Dish," and I read an article about a Glasgow curry house laying claim to have invented the now famous recipe. The first drafts were called The Kanpur Curry House, but they were messier than The Shish’s tablecloths. I wanted the story to have more gravity - more intelligence - more cultural resonance. I not only had to change the concept of the story, but [I] also had to find a setting in which there was an Indian heritage. I’d shot Dirty Laundry in New Jersey, years earlier, and had remembered from our location scouting that there was this place, Edison, in which there was a restaurant strip called "Little India." A feature film project about food, family, and sub-culture will surely have more chance of finding interest and finance if it’s set in the U.S.; I thought, particularly when you think of films like The Big Sick, Today’s Special, and Chef. So I had my location, and, with it, I weaved a story about an Indian-American family, the Agarwals, and their restaurant, The Holy Cow. A spoiler alert isn’t necessary when I tell you the decrepit, down-on-its-knees Holy Cow was once a famous institution, NJ’s first Indian restaurant, now in need of saving and restoring to its former glory, but whether its new owner, Anwesh Agarwal is up to the task is another question.