NAMASTEY LONDON COMPLETES FILMING
(January 2007)

After the phenomenal success of Waqt which entered the UK Box Office Charts at number 11, director Vipul Shah presents a spell binding love story, 'Namastey London' which was shot extensively in London, with the city forming a vital backdrop for the film. Almost 12-14 Bollywood films are shot in the UK each year, contributing £20million to the UK’s economy. In recent years, London has been the hotbed of drama for Indian cinema especially for films that consider the topic of cross-cultural relations.

Riding on the successful wave of cross-over cinema, Namastey London deals with the love affairs of the youth on a global level; how the modern youth are living in the Western world in countries such as the UK, USA and Australia and how they perceive love compared to the younger generations living in areas such as Punjab, Delhi and Mumbai.

Namastey London trails the story of Arjun (Akshay Kumar), a kind-hearted, homely character from the heart of Punjab who makes his way to London to win the heart of the British girl (Katrina Kaif). Although the film is the epitome of ‘love on celluloid’, beneath the glossed, romantic layers, Namastey London unfurls to reveal a pivotal drama that speaks to all diaspora groups who have migrated from their place of origin to then settle in the West, and the plight migrants face with assimilating into the host culture and maintaining an affinity with what they call their ‘home’.

Namastey London has made history as it is the first product from Indian cinema to have an entire international and Hollywood production crew the objective being to make the film have an international feel and look in line with its global appeal. The film’s director of photography is Jonathan Bloom, location manager Keith Hatcher (Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone), head of art department and production design Paul Burns (The Business, The Football Factory) makeup artist Kateling (head makeup artist at the BBC), and casting director Claire Saunders (Match Point), reflecting the cross-cultural synergies integral to the film.

Vipul Shah has ensured that the cast of Namastey London physically resemble the characters they play. The story revolves around key central characters including A List and award winning star Akshay Kumar, aspiring actors Katrina Kaif and Upen Patel, legend Rishi Kappor, British actress Nina Wadia, acclaimed Pakistani actor Javed Sheikh and British actors Clive Standon and Tiffany McFadden who form the formidable cast.

'Namastey London' is scheduled for release in 2007.