The Mistress of Spices

It’s been said that “variety is the spice of life.” In The Mistress of Spices we learn that every spice has a purpose. This charming film originally produced in 2005 finds it way to DVD courtesy of The Weinstein Company and stars native India beauty Aishwarya Rai as Tilo and The Practice’s Dylan McDermott as Doug.

The movie is based on the popular novel by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni and is directed by Paul Mayeda Berges. Rai gives a heart-felt performance as Tilo, a young Indian woman living in San Francisco with the old world magical gift to “see” into people’s lives and desires. The gift is courtesy of her devotion to the spices in her shop which she uses to advise and help customers in their daily lives. To retain her powers she has to abide by three rules. First, she is never to think about her own desires but rather use the spices to only help others. Second, her touch must only be for the spices, not for any human. Last, she is never to leave the store- the home of the spices. That sounds easy enough until the day she meets handsome architect, Doug, who crashes his motorcycle in front of her shop.

What transpires is the beginnings of a sensual love story that takes Tilo into areas of her heart that she has never explored. The more she falls in love with Doug and defies the rules of the spices, the more the spices begin to misbehave sometimes causing terrible outcomes for the customers that have come to rely on Tilo’s gift. She must decide whether to follow her heart or follow tradition.

Rai brings realism and a unique sensuality to the role of Tilo and it’s hard not to sympathize with her dilemma. I wish director Berges had refrained from the unintentional comical voiceovers by Tilo talking to her spices. The technique did not work and seemed out of place.

I’ve never been a huge fan of McDermott but his chemistry with Rai was undeniably sensual and believable. You want him to get the girl. His performance definitely makes me view him in a different light.

So, if you’re a fan of films such as Chocolat then warm up a nice pot of spice tea, dim the lights, cuddle up with a love one, and enjoy The Mistress of Spices.