Bolly Good Show

The London Palladium was decked out with all the trappings of a glamorous Indian wedding last night. Brightly coloured ornamental cloths hung from the walls and banisters and traditional Indian drums played at a booming pitch, while there was even someone on hand to administer a traditional Hindu bindhi to proffered foreheads. All this was to mark the world premiere of Bride and Prejudice, the latest Anglo-Indian offering from Bend It Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha. It's a modern, Bollywood influenced version of Jane Austen's classic tale of social niceties, set mainly in India but with excursions to the UK and US for good measure, and looks set to introduce Bollywood cinema culture to a wider audience. "Tonight Bollywood comes to the world!" exclaimed Martin Henderson, who plays male lead Will Darcy. Well, maybe not the whole world - but it got off to a pretty good start here in London. Director Gurninder Chadha was stunned by the massive turnout, and recovered inside with a glass of white wine. "It's really exciting! There's a wonderful welcome out there from the crowd." Many of the spectators turned up to catch a glimpse of the film's beautiful star Aishwarya Rai, the former Miss World who plays Darcy's romantic interest Lalita Bakshi. A talented actress, Aishwarya is one of Bollywood's biggest, shiniest stars, and one who fell from the gorgeous tree and hit every single branch on the way down, poor love. Rai was excited with the result of her work, and her first major film outside Bollywood. "The shooting was of great benefit to all of us. We learnt to work with each other people from India, Britain and the US, and we all found common ground." Martin joined in. "I think that at first we were worried how the western and eastern techniques would come together. But ultimately Gurinder found a really delicate balance. The film is a celebration of both cultures." Bride and Prejudice will open at cinemas across the country on October 8.