Movie: Bend It Like Beckham
Director: Gurinder Chadha
Cast: Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys, Anupam Kher, Archie Panjabi
Rating: ****
Cook alu gobhi like a pucca desi kudi or kick ball like iconic soccer her David Beckham: that’s the Hamletian dilemma that Gurinder Chadha poses in this feel-good film about female empowerment. It could also be termed as an underdog sports flick, which also focuses on culture clash.
Born and bred in a traditional Sikh family in old Blighty, Jesminder ‘Jess’ (Parminder) must fight against destiny that envisages a traditional future for the feisty girl – one where she would be rolling chapattis for her family rather than scoring goals for women’s Soccer team. With exquisite comic flair, Chadha shows a clash of tradition versus modernity, in which Jess emerges as a poster girl for feminism, without any strident sloganeering or flag waving.
Jess secretly joins the football team after being discovered by Juliette ‘Jules’ Paxton (Keira), a professional footballer, and trains for the big match while her family plans her sister’s wedding. Of course, Jess finds romance and falls in love with her coach, Joe (Jonathan), even though this causes her to split with her friend, Jules.
In “Bend It Like Beckham”, eventually, it’s team spirit that soars and tradition that takes a back-seat.