BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM
This past week marked the 20th anniversary of the oh-so-iconic film BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM (trailer here) by Gurinder Chaddha. This story about Jesminder Bhamra (Parminder Nagra), a young British-Indian Sikh girl aspiring to be a soccer player, turned out to be a surprise hit and a much needed reference for young South Asian women everywhere, sparking one-liners that are still zinged about to aunties and uncles everywhere today. The film explores the nuances of what it means to be British, hold a hybrid identity, and what it’s like to have a strong passion for a sport, or art, that isn’t quite understood or recognized in one’s community. And the film’s various messages hold as true today as they did 20 years ago, as the film was very much ahead of its time. It also features a young Keira Knightley in one of her first feature films.
—Nimarta Narang, Digital Fellow
