Ritesh Batra gets innovative to revive Mumbai's Irani cafes

Mumbai, March 28
"The Lunchbox" fame director Ritesh Batra is trying to revive Mumbai's Irani cafes with a series of events at select spots in the city.

The first two sessions were held at Koolar Cafe and Kyani Bakery, while the third session - a candid chat with casting directors Atul Mongia and Seher Latif - was held on Friday at Excelsior Cafe.

"My objective is to reinvent these cafes as cultural spaces to exchange ideas. It's very heartening to see full house at these events," Batra said in a statement.

In the one-hour interactive session, Mongia and Latif shared their thoughts on the casting process, while Batra moderated the talk.

In his endeavour to promote the Irani cafes, Batra even requested the enthusiastic audience of young and aspiring actors to order eatables or drinks worth Rs.50 from the cafe and come back to these cafes again.