Food brings together two lonely hearts within bustling Mumbai in The Lunchbox.

For a sight of epic organisational skill, one need to look no further than the Mumbai lunch delivery system, where everyday a million lunch packs are collected from kitchens (both domestic and restaurant) and delivered to workplaces across the city, a feat so technically marvellous that Harvard University praised its efficiency.

Yet within that million there is one that gets away, setting in motion a tender, funny and at times love story between ignored housewife Ila (Nimrat Kaur) and cantankerous office worker Saajan (Irrfan Khan), after the carefully prepared lunch she made to win back the attention of her incredibly insensitive husband makes its way to Saajan’s desk.

A back and forth begins with the two through notes places in the lunch container, writer/director Ritesh Batra (in his debut) strengthening the connection between the two through a steady pace, bringing their own stories to the fore and winning our hearts and sympathies in the process.

Batra also surprises in having the “food” part of this love story play the role of matchmaker without resorting to glamorous shots of food, sweet food, which is particularly impressive considering the vibrant visual palate that Indian cuisine evokes.

It’s not about what the dishes of The Lunchbox look like, but why they were made that lies in the heart of the film.

Kaur plays the lonely housewife with a quiet suffering, her messages written to this office worker stranger revealing a broken heart and dark thoughts of a life trapped in unloved neglect.

It’s those words and the love placed in her food that warms the heart and stomach of the otherwise bitter Saajan. Khan’s performance is in itself a tasty buffet, filled with a simmering anger, desperate loneliness, and a biting sense of humour, Khan delivering Batra’s well written comedic dialogue with a perfectly dry wit.

Viewers who know Khan’s work from his previous western ventures (Slumdog Millionaire, Life of Pi) will get a kick out of what he does in The Lunchbox, a romance and a comedy (not a romantic comedy) with depth and heartfelt conviction.