Region takes centre stage in new Bollywood movie
THE city of Birmingham and the Black Country are playing a starring role in a new Bollywood film.
is a romcom about an Indian singer who comes to Birmingham to study in the hope of impressing the parents of the girl he wants to marry.
Most of the film was shot in Birmingham and surrounding areas, and landmarks such as the Bullring, Library of Birmingham and Brindleyplace take centre stage.
The film’s trailer shows Birmingham’s Cannon Street and the hero running across the bridge in Brindleyplace and down Broad Street. West Bromwich High Street, and the Gurdwara in Smethwick are also seen.
A key scene also features a colourful flashmob of bhangra dancers taking over Victoria Square, which was shot in August 2015 and involved members of the public as well as professional group Gabhru Panjab De Bhangra Dancers. The film stars Hardy Sandhu as Sherry Singh, a singer in the Punjab in India who is forced to look for love abroad.
NRI stands for Non-Resident Indian. Sherry decides to become an NRI boy by studying at a “very big college in England” – in Birmingham – where he meets Mandy.
The film had a £1 million budget and was shot over 22 days in Birmingham and 10 days in India.
It was directed by Gaurav Bavdankar from Mumbai, who is now based in Birmingham.
He said: “In our film, the city of Birmingham is a character in itself. Birmingham has the biggest population of Punjabis in the UK so it has to be Birmingham for me.
“The city has a lot of versatility. Most of the supporting cast are sourced locally, with at least 20 actors from Birmingham.”
Mahi NRI is on general release.