Sri Lanka is a tropical island that is abundant with movie film locations and film set locations sprawled across the hugely diverse tropical island. With many filmmakers discovering Sri Lanka as a location for filming many film set locations are being recognized for their natural beauty, intricate architecture and uniqueness.
One such film set location is Jetwing Saman Villas that is known to be the first boutique hotel of Sri Lanka. This glorious boutique hotel surrounded by aqua-hued waters has been thrown into the limelight as a distinctive film set location after appearing in the Bollywood hit mini series “The Night Manager” starring Anil Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur. “Jetwing Saman villas” is portrayed as the main villain Shailendras tropical island hideout in Sri Lanka.
The highly esteemed luxury magazine, Condé Nast Traveler, featured Saman Villas giving light into the name and location of the stunning beach residence of the Indian version of The Night Manager. In this article it details the less known film set location of “Jetwing Saman” Villa to their high-end clientele that patronizes the travel magazine.
The Night Manager has become one of the most successful miniseries ever in India boasting of a viewership of over 9 million in the first week alone. For a die-hard fan of the show, it is very possible to organize a getaway to Shailendras tropical island hideout without much hassle.
This movie film location sits on a rocky headland dividing two long golden beaches. These beaches are mostly isolated with green palm trees decorating just behind the beach and the only sounds you will hear are the cries of seagulls and the surf below making this an ideal location for filming in the tropical island of Sri Lanka.
Jetwing Saman villas was first opened to the public on Christmas day 1995. The villa comprises of 27 suites (some with private pools) that are strategically placed to face the western coast and incredible sunsets. As a film set location it comprises of many locations within the property that can be used for filming. The restaurant and bar area naturally flows into a sunset lounge with views of the long strip of empty beach and the Indian ocean. The infinity pool is perched on the rocky headland giving you a birds eye view of the surrounding area while lounging in the pool. “Saman Villa” also comprises of a Spa, Gym, and office facilities that could all be used as film set locations.
The versatility of choosing “saman villas” as a film set location was displayed when shooting The Night Manager as there were scenes shot in the entrance / parking lot of the villa filming many automobiles entering the secured space of the main villain played by Anil Kapoor. The Spa also was put into use as a recovery room for the main protagonist Shaan as he is suspiciously interrogated by Brijpal.
The Sunset lounge was used for a lavish dinner party which entertained all Shailendras guests. The pool area was used many times to showcase fabulous outdoor scenes which overflowed to adjoining lawns that have ample space to film. even the interiors of the villa rooms were filmed for intricate one on one scenes. The epic scene of a helicopter air lifting in an injured Shaan directly to the beach adjoining “Saman villas” also looked spectacular as seen in the Night Manager miniseries. Having all these locations for filming locked in one location gives the filmmaker great versatility and ease to complete many scenes in this film set location.
Jetwing Saman Villas is one of the main attractions of a small fishing town named Bentota. Being just one hour away from the main city of Colombo its an ideal location for filming. With the upsurge of tourism the town of Bentota is a prime film set location as all the amenities for a film production crew is already in place. The Night Manager is the first film production to feature this iconic location for the first time in the silver screen. Sri Lanka has a plethora of fantastic locations that could suit any filmmaker looking to film on a tropical island.