Taste of India directed by Fabio Garofalo & Jacopo Santambrogio

Milan Becomes London for One Night: The Independent Journey of Taste of India

A street on the outskirts of London, two robbers, a victim on the phone with his mother, and a Mexican standoff that unexpectedly turns into comedy. Watching Taste of India, it is hard to imagine that this nocturnal London setting is, in fact, Milan.

The ten-minute short film, written by Fabio Garofalo and co-directed by Garofalo and Jacopo Santambrogio, is an independent production by Don’t Movie, a Milan-based video production company that combines commercial work for brands and agencies with its own filmmaking projects. The entire film was shot over the course of a single night, transforming a location in Milan into a believable corner of suburban London through production design, cinematography and meticulous sound work.

Language plays a key role in completing the illusion: Taste of India is performed entirely in English by an international cast. The result is a film that, although conceived and produced in Italy, carries the look, rhythm and atmosphere of a British dark comedy.

The story follows Patrick, recently fired from his job, who is mugged while speaking to his mother on the phone. The arrival of a second criminal suddenly complicates the situation: who actually has the right to rob him? From there, the film develops into an absurd game of power, identity and darkly comic tension.

Born, as Don’t Movie has described it on its own channels, from “passion, care and a healthy dose of creative recklessness,” Taste of India turned that single night of filming into an unexpectedly successful festival journey. In 2025, it became the fourth most awarded Italian short film of the year, receiving recognition for Best Film, Direction, Screenplay, Comedy, Audience Award and Production Design.