Chennai Express’ shoot teaches Rohit Shetty, Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone survive on biscuits

Every film is a learning experience for every star, as actors say usually. The stars and the crew members of Chennai Express may have learnt a lot about films from their latest venture but they have learnt something more too. They have learnt how to cope up with most adverse situations while shooting outdoors.

Around 200 crew members, including director Rohit Shetty and lead actors Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone, depended on biscuits to keep themselves away from the striking hunger, caused by lack of food for several days of their shooting. A unit member revealed, "This was during an elaborate schedule at Dudhsagar, Goa.” The source added, "There was a major train sequence that had to be filmed on location and we had to be there at six in the morning every day to shoot that. Since this involved a train that passed through a bridge on a scheduled hour, we had to work on very tight timelines." And the early morning schedule finally led to a nightmare for the Chennai Express team.

The unit member recalled, "There was lunch prepared for us but we realized that by the time we were ready for it, it was rotten.” He said further, "Our cook told us that since he had to prepare food for 200 people, and he had to begin preparations at two in the night. When it was finally time for lunch ten hours later, it didn't remain fresh at all." After discussing with Shah Rukh it was decided that biscuits are the only option left to survive through the rest of the week-long shooting schedule. Director Shetty also confirmed, "Shah Rukh led from the front and we procured tons of biscuit packs which belonged to varied variety. Everyone skipped their regular day meals for almost a week and there were no complaints whatsoever.” He also said, "Everyone understood that there was no other way out. It was all being done for the love of the film. And yes, our cook was the happiest since he was the only one who managed to get some extra hours of sleep."