It’s 1987, and the life of a British Muslim teenager suddenly has meaning when he discovers the music of superstar Bruce Springsteen. This inspiring, feel-good film titled Blinded By The Light , is director Gurinder Chadha’s latest project, based on the memoir Greetings From Bury Park by British writer and broadcaster Sarfraz Manzoor.
The film, which releases on August 14 this year in the UK, comes out over ten years after Manzoor published his memoir. It helped that Chadha herself is a fan of Springsteen and a chance meeting with Manzoor in 2010 sowed the seeds of this project.
The trailer was released on Thursday and was shared by Springsteen himself on his official Twitter and Instagram handles. It begins with the sounds of 1980s British pop band Human League in the background with the protagonist Javed (Viviek Kalra) mixing with white friends but ill at ease with his conservative, intolerant dad who forbids him from speaking to girls.
Javed is then introduced to Springsteen’s music, interestingly, by a fellow Asian friend, and as the background changes to Springsteen’s hits like Dancing in the Dark , Born to Run and Promised Land , Javed experiences a rebirth.
He draws an emotional connect with Springsteen’s lyrics, which he sees as a form of escapism from his working-class background in Luton, and the grim racial and economic climate. He wants to pursue his passion for writing but his family would have none of it, or his craze for Springsteen, who appears alien to their culture. “He talks to me”, cries an exasperated Javed as family tensions boil over.
Manzoor co-wrote the script with Chadha and the film has the blessings of The Boss ” Springsteen himself, who sanctioned his select hits for the movie. The film also stars Rob Brydon, Hayley Atwell and Kulvinder Ghir and the music is by A.R. Rahman.
Watch the trailer here:
