Everything was in place for this to be a real benchmark American Bollywood fusion flick (are there enough out there for that to be an actual genre?), but Dylan McDermott was so horribly miscast as Aishwarya Rai's love interest that I was gagging every time they shared the screen. Painfully unwatchable. How oafish, vapid and superficial can a guy be? Really, this film could have been so much more powerful with a more appropriate male lead.<br /><br />The idea of the magic of the spices was a bit of a stretch for me at first, but Aishwarya played it well and carried it off nicely. I liked how the intent of each spice could turn on its head if the rules were not followed. Great colors!<br /><br />Remember folks, listen to the chilies. They should have warned the casting director, heh heh.