The owner of a Turkish kebab takeaway in High Wycombe has described the day a film crew shot scenes for a Netflix movie at his shop as ‘unbelievable’.
Halil 'Harry' Olgar, who owns Zem Kebab in the town (as well as Cozy Fish and Chips in Hazlemere and Holmer Green Kebab), recounted to the Free Press how the production team chose his establishment along Amersham Road for their flick.
His business appeared in the recently released crime thriller, ‘The Buckingham Murders’, which focuses on Jasmeet "Jass" Bhamra - a grieving detective who lost her son after he was shot by a drug user.
She requests a transfer from her force to an area in Buckinghamshire (which later turns out to be High Wycombe) and is immediately tasked with solving the murder of a Sikh teenager called Ishpreet Kohli.
A Muslim boy is then arrested on suspicion of Ishpreet’s death, which causes huge racial tensions amongst areas of Wycombe between those who practise Sikhism and Islam.
The film was released to the public at the start of this month on Netflix and has been widely acclaimed by critics, mainly for its huge plot twists.
Speaking on the experience, Mr Olgar said: “They approached me as they were looking for a takeaway, like a kebab shop or a fish and chip shop in High Wycombe.
“They said they wanted to use us because we had not long won the Kebab Awards that year, and as we are on the corner of the road, it was a perfect spot for them to shoot their scenes.”
“It was a brilliant day – an unbelievable day.”
Shots of Zem are frequently seen in the middle of the film, as it’s where some of the detectives meet to discuss how and why Ishpreet was killed in High Wycombe.
And even though their stint in the two-hour movie was brief, lasting only a few minutes, Mr Olgar said he enjoyed the experience.
The crew came to his establishment in October 2022, using the kebab shop for one day.
Mr Olgar said: “The film stars Kareena Kapoor Khan who is of course this huge Bollywood actress.
“People got wind that she could have been in the area and the shop phone was constantly ringing.
“Customers wanted to know if she was in the area so they could see her.
“She wasn’t there as those scenes didn’t involve her, but it was funny as one of the producers asked me to turn off the phone as we were getting a lot of calls.”
He continued: “Of course, it is good advertising as it gives Zem a bit of publicity and it’s nice that people are coming in from that.
“I have seen a lot of new faces since the movie was released and they have said they have come in for that reason.
“It was nice that they chose here.”
'The Buckingham Murders' is now out on Netflix.
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