In 2014, during season 10 of Pékin Expressthe teams had been arrested by the Indian authorities who suspected them of espionage. Despite this mishap, the production decided to give this country a second chance for the All-stars season which begins on M6.
Remember, in 2014, the filming of season 10 of Pékin Express had been interrupted while the cameras were being installed in India. Candidates and technicians (about fifty people in total) had been arrested by the police and taken to the police station to answer for suspicions of espionage. It was the use of satellite phones lent to candidates at night in case of emergency that caused the teams a real scare. They were then in a sensitive area, the surroundings of Chalsa, close to Nepal, China, Bangladesh and Bhutan, known by the authorities for the presence of rebel groups.
“I learned to know where it’s complicated” : Stéphane Rotenberg (Beijing Express, The Epic of the Maharajas) looks back on his misadventure in India in 2014
Three technicians had been held for several weeks in India and Stéphane Rotenberg then described this shoot as “hell”. But as the All Stars season begins, Beijing Express, The epic of the Maharajasfilmed in Rajasthan, we asked the host and the production about this return to India after such a mishap. “I knew that in these regions it would be less complicated”says Stéphane Rotenberg to Tele-Leisure. “Often when there are tensions, it is when we are close to problematic borders, that is where the military will be tense.. There, on the contrary, we knew that the risk was very low. Now, I have learned to know where it is complicated. For example, in Turkey, which is a wonderful country, it was more complicated when you get closer to Iraq than when you are close to Greece.”adds the iconic host of the race.
Why the production of Beijing Express, The epic of the Maharajas decided to return to India despite “some bad memories”
The teams of Pékin Express had not returned to India since their arrest in 2014. Producer Thierry Guillaume told Tele-Leisure having had some apprehensions before filming in this country, ten years later.Yes, the country brought back some bad memories for me, and I imagine for Stéphane too. And I found a very different country. Like the rest of the world, India has changed too. We were a little apprehensive, yes, before going back there. But from the first day of filming, I understood that it was going to go well. The candidates had no difficulty getting picked up while hitchhiking, no difficulty in finding accommodation. And then the visual impact and the journey remained the same.”The production has therefore decided to give this country, impressive for its cultural richness and the diversity of its landscapes, a new chance. “JI knew that for the candidates, it was going to be a shock still as violent. I only think about that when we prepare a route, the shock we will provoke among the candidates and the images we will bring back afterwards”confides Thierry Guillaume the producer. The launch of the All-stars season, The epic of the maharajasalready promises to be full of emotions!
