Recently, photos from Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston’s Murder Mystery 2 showed them in an Indian setting, sparking rumours of a strong desi cast or an India-related subplot. While we wait for this mystery to unfold, check out these Hollywood movies filmed in India! By Anushka Goel
Check out these Hollywood movies filmed in India
Tenet
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The Christopher Nolan directorial includes actors such as Robert Pattinson, John David Washington, Kenneth Branagh, Dimple Kapadia and Denzil Smith. The film, which was among the first to have a theatrical release in India amid the COVID-19 pandemic, has been partly shot in Mumbai, covering places such as Colaba Causeway, Breach Candy Hospital, the Taj Mahal Palace, and more.
Eat Pray Love
A film on author Elizabeth Gilbert’s book of the same name, Eat Pray Love highlights her own journey (played by Julia Roberts in the film) of healing and loving herself through a spiritual sojourn of sorts – eating in Italy, praying in India, and finding a balance in love in Indonesia’s Bali. In India, spends time in an ashram, befriends locals and finds herself. The scenes of her time in India were shot in Delhi and Pataudi.
Lion
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The film, based on Saroo Brierley’s A Long Way Home, is about a child who gets separated from his family and ends up in an orphanage, only to be adopted by an Australian couple. As a grown-up, he tries to search for his birth family. Lion‘s portions featuring the protagonist’s childhood were filmed in Kolkata.
Jobs
Steve Jobs had visited India as a youngster and spent a few months here. So, it’s no wonder that several portions of his biographical drama, Jobs (starring Ashton Kutcher), were shot in India – specifically in Delhi and Varanasi.
Slumdog Millionaire
The Oscar-winning drama is set in Mumbai and heavily features Mumbai‘s slums. The story of a street boy Jamal who makes it to the TV show Kaun Banega Crorepati (Who Wants To Be A Millionaire), the film is extensively shot in the city and features actors such as Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Anil Kapoor, Irrfan, and more. The soundtrack was scored by AR Rahman.
Extraction
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The Chris Hemsworth and Randeep Hooda-starrer is one of the Hollywood movies filmed in India. The film takes place in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where the son of an imprisoned crime lord is kidnapped and taken. However, while the setting is the neighbouring country, the scenes were actually shot in Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
The Dark Knight Rises
The third and final installment of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy had some portions shot in Jodhpur. The film’s cast includes Christian Bale, Tom Hardy and Anne Hathaway, and the story follows Batman, who tries to save Gotham City from Bane.
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
Some portions of the Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol were shot in the narrow streets of Mumbai. The fourth installment of the spy-thriller featured Tom Cruise in the lead, with an Anil Kapoor cameo in this Hollywood movie.
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
The movie is a fantasy romance drama between a woman, Daisy, who befriends a man, Benjamin. What’s unusual is that Benjamin seems to be ageing backwards. Some portions of the movie have been shot in Varanasi and feature the city’s ghats.
Life Of Pi
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The film is based on the novel of the same name by Yann Martel and features Suraj Sharma, Irrfan, Tabu and Adil Hussain, among others. The film centres around Piscine Molitor Patel, aka Pi Patel, and his journey travelling on the waters – a story of survival, unlikely friendships, and more.
A Mighty Heart
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Based on the kidnapping of Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl, the film stars Angelina Jolie as Daniel’s pregnant widow Marianne, who embarks on a journey to find her missing husband. While set in Karachi, the film was shot in Mumbai and Pune and also stars Irrfan.
The Namesake
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Mira Nair’s The Namesake, one of the many Hollywood movies filmed in India, is the story of an Indian origin couple and their son, who, as an adult, struggles to and tries to rekindle his relationship with his culture. The movie stars Irrfan, Tabu and Kal Penn in major roles, and the Indian portions were shot in Kolkata.
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
The film features a stellar cast of Dame Maggie Smith, Judi Dench and Dev Patel, and is based on retired Britishers who visit India on a vacation. The film was shot in Jaipur and Udaipur, covering the heritage and culture of Rajasthan.
Octopussy
The 1983 spy thriller and the 13th James Bond film had scenes shot in Udaipur, with the city also being one of the places featured in the movie. Octopussy, which stars Roger Moore as James Bond, also features Kabir Bedi.
Zero Dark Thirty
The film is based on the manhunt for Osama Bin Laden and saw Chandigarh being converted into Lahore and Abbottabad to depict those locations. Punjab Engineering College premises and the DAV College canteen feature in some scenes in the film.
Gandhi
The 1982 film is definitely among the most popular Hollywood movies filmed in India. Based on the life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi aka Mahatma Gandhi, the film takes us through his life and journey. A lot of the movie, which features Sir Ben Kingsley as Gandhi and Rohini Hattangadi as his wife Kasturba, has a lot of other Indian actors such as Saeed Jaffrey, Amrish Puri, Om Puri, Dalip Tahil, Neena Gupta, and Alok Nath, feature in prominent roles.
Million Dollar Arm
The biographical drama is based on a failing sports agent’s attempt to visit India, find two of the best fast bowlers, bring them to the USA and make them baseball players. Parts of the movie were shot in Mumbai and Agra.
Outsourced
This comedy Hollywood movie filmed in India is about an American who comes to India when his department is outsourced here. The film stars Josh Hamilton and Ayesha Dharker, and parts of it were filmed in Mumbai.
The Darjeeling Limited
The film stars Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman as three brothers who decide to meet up in India after a year of their father’s funeral, in an attempt to embark on a spiritual journey on a luxury train. Parts of the film were shot in Jodhpur.
Viceroy’s House
Viceroy’s House is a historical drama set around the partition of India. The Gurinder Chadha directorial features Hugh Bonneville and Gillian Anderson, and also features Indian actors such as Huma Qureshi and Om Puri. The Indian portions of the film were shot in Jodhpur.
Related: On Hrithik Roshan’s Birthday, Here Are 7 Travel Goals That His Movies Gave Us
Anushka Goel
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