Behind the glamour of cinema lie countless untold stories of the people who work tirelessly behind the scenes. One such story comes from Rajesh, a production assistant who has been serving food on Malayalam film sets for over three decades. Speaking on Club FM’s programme The Crew Club, Rajesh opened up about his journey in cinema and the food preferences of some of Malayalam cinema’s biggest stars.

Rajesh began his film career with the Shyamaprasad–Shobana film Agni Sakshi, earning just Rs 75 as his first salary. Thirty years on, he is now the state secretary of the FEFKA Production Assistant Union. Currently, he is working on a Nivin Pauly project and is set to join the film Thudakkam, which marks the acting debut of Mohanlal’s daughter Vismaya.

What’s cooked on a film set?

Rajesh said that food for actors and crew is prepared from the same mess. At present, the contracted cost works out to around Rs 350 per person per day for four meals.

Breakfast usually includes idli, poori, upma made of rava or ragi, and others. Lunch typically features boiled rice varieties, fish curry and fried fish. Chicken or beef dishes are served on alternate days, while Sundays are special, with biryani prepared for the entire crew.

Stars and their favourite foods

According to Rajesh, most actors follow strict diets while shooting. Mohanlal, when on a diet, consumes only milk porridge three times a day and prefers food from the set mess rather than outside catering.

Mammootty, on the other hand, largely avoids rice and has a special fondness for small fish. Rajesh added that Mammootty makes it a point to treat the entire unit to mutton biryani on the pack-up day of every film.

Asif Ali’s favourites are simple fare like upma and boiled banana, while actress Urvashi is a big fan of fish dishes.

Work begins at 3.30 am

Rajesh said an eight-member team prepares food for a film crew of about 100 people, with work starting as early as 3.30 am.

“We clean the utensils used the previous night and begin cooking fresh food before dawn. Ensuring an uninterrupted supply of tea, snacks and juices during shooting is a big responsibility. Even in forests or remote locations, we set up tents, transport supplies in vans and make sure food is ready on time,” he said.

Having experienced hunger in his younger days, Rajesh said he considers serving food to others a blessing, a philosophy that has sustained him through three decades in the film industry.