It is 2010, and you’re watching the VMAs, and Lady Gaga just walked in wearing a meat dress. What follows are all the controversies and discussions surrounding the dress. This is just one of the several controversial throwbacks we got to see in Netflix’s new Vegan documentary “Bad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitive”.
Revolving around the story of SarmaMelngailis, a Vegan restaurateur turned criminal who later came to be known as the “Vegan Fugitive.” Sarma’s claim to fame was her restaurant Pure Food and Wine, which was once a New York buzz place among all healthy eaters. It was also well known as the “top raw vegan restaurant globally” until it all changed in 2011.
When is Bad Vegan Releasing?
Produced by Ryan Fraser, Mark Emms, and Chris Smith, the director of it, the series is a Netflix original. The streaming platform dropped a trailer to the series on its official YouTube channel on the 16th of Friday, announcing its release a month later, on March 16, 2022.
The OTT platform has always been known for its wide and varied collection of docu-series, the recent one being the Tinder Swindler, which has created a lot of buzz among its viewers. So it would be interesting to see what it’s got with this documentary.
Should You Stream It or Skip It?
Veganism is a raging concept in today’s world, with more and more people adopting it everyday. Not only does it provide for a better standard of living, but it also protects the environment. However, back in 2010, it was a concept affordable only to the well-to-do classes of New York City. In walks, Sarma Melngailis saw the business opportunity in it and started her Vegan food restaurant Pure Food and Wine, which became an instant hit in the Big Apple.
It was buzzing among the city dwellers, including several Hollywood big names like Owen Wilson and Woody Harrelson. However, what culminated after it made up most of the docuseries. The rise and fall of Vegan Queen as she and her husband Anthony get charged with grand theft, tax fraud, and planning to defraud a net sum of $2 million.
The show is riddled with interviews and footage from the restaurant, her former colleagues and chefs, and friends of the couple, each laying out their perspective. So Outcall would be to STREAM IT! From what we can get from the trailer, it will make a fascinating watch.
Cast
The Tiger King fame Chris Smith is the director of the series. He is also one of the three producers of the show. The show’s cast is yet to be revealed, but we might get glimpses of big-shot celebrities like Owen Wilson, Alec Baldwin, and his wife, Woody Harrelson, Gisele Bündchen since they were regulars at her restaurant. Besides them, the show will also contain interviews of Melngailis’ ex-colleagues and chefs.
What is the Show About?
The four-part docu-series follows the life of the Vegan Queen and celebrity restaurateur SarmaMelngailis who shot to fame with her famous Pure Food and Wine in New York City. It was a famous vegan restaurant, and by famous we mean visited by celebs famous.
Her celebrity status soon disintegrates into that of criminal when she gets herself into a romantic relationship with Anthony Strangis, an ex-convict charged with robbery and impersonating a uniformed officer. Together they pulled grand theft larceny of 2 million dollars from investors and employees.
