Bend It Without Beckham

A low budget British film about football and a traditional Sikh wedding in Hounslow, Gurinder Chadha's production started with modest hopes but, coming out of leftfield if you will, Bend It Like Beckham has turned into the biggest UK sleeper hit since The Full Monty. Premiereing last night (11 April) at London's Odeon Leicester Square, the film arrived with the kind of fanfare no one making the film had expected. "Absolutely not, we had no idea," Keira Knightley, who plays Jules in the film, told Empire Online. "We had a fantastic time making it and I think that's all you can ask for so it's a bonus that all this has started happening." The film follows the aspirations of Jess, a girl with a passion for footie and a love for David Beckham, who joins a local girls' team at the behest of newfound friend Jules. Unbeknownst to her traditionalist - and very disapproving - Sikh parents, Jess oges on to prove her worth on the pitch. Utterly brilliant and guaranteed to bring a smile to your face, this feel-good film has gone down a storm with critics, surprising all, and none more than co-writer and director Gurinder Chadha. "I thought that it was going to be a sweet film," she said, "I thought that it was going to get an audience behind it but I had no idea it was going to be as warmly received as this." Forced to develop her footwork pretty sharpish, Knightley and star Parminder Nagra had quite a time preparing themselves to deliver a convincing performance on the field. "I hadn't even kicked a ball before this," said Nagra. "In fact I couldn't actually see the point. But we did two months of training beforehand and, you know, we got there with a bit of coaching." "Yes, there was lots of footballing school," said Knightley, "which was very difficult because I'm a couch potato, so actually running around is a huge problem for me." Gathered crowds were entertained by a group of traditional Sikh dhol players, thumping out a lively rhythm on their drums. Co-stars Juliet Stevenson, Shaznay Lewis, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Shaheen Khan, Frank Harper and Kulvinder Ghir also turned up to show their support, as did ex-Spice Girl Mel C, clearly not holding a grudge that one of the best jokes in the film is had at her expense. In fact the only people notable by their absence were the Beckhams themselves, who had promised to attend but, due to David's broken foot - gained in a match the previous night - were unable to come. But the pair did make their support for the film known, sending a bouquet of flowers and a letter of praise, which was read out before the feature.