''Triads, Yardies and Onion Bhajees'' is a 2003 British

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by

Sarjit Bains Sarjit Bains is an independant UK-based film director of Punjabi Indian heritage. His debut feature film was called '' Triads, Yardies and Onion Bhajees'' (2003). His second feature ''Cash and Curry'', starring Ameet Chana and Pooja Shah, was ...

, telling the story of a hitman working in London. The film stars real life ex-gangster and underworld don

Dave Courtney David John Courtney (born 17 February 1959) is an English self-proclaimed former gangster who has become both an author and celebrity. Author Bernard O'Mahoney and Frankie Fraser (the former member of the Richardson gang) have accused Courtn ...

. Brainchild of Manish Patel, who plays the role of Singh, the story's protagonist, ''Triads, Yardies and Onion Bhajees'' was showcased in a

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

documentary on the making of the film. The film draws upon the imagery of Hindu deity

Kali Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hinduism, Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In t ...

, traditionally invoked to vanquish evil, with the three gangs being likened to modern-day

thugee Thuggee (, ) are actions and crimes carried out by Thugs, historically, organised gangs of professional robbers and murderers in India. The English word ''thug'' traces its roots to the Hindi ठग (), which means 'swindler' or 'deceiver'. Rela ...

s. After its Cannes showcase the film was optioned by 4 Digital Media and went on UK wide release through the independent cinema network.

Plot

Triads, Yardies and Onion Bhajees is primarily an action movie but it has a mythological and spiritual vein running through it. The character of Chacha worships the Hindu Goddess

, and a statue of

is shown both in his home and in his office. Chacha is seen praying to the Goddess in a temple. Chachas influence and teachings have also influenced members of his gang. The image of Kali can be seen in the homes of his various gang members. The smoke emanating from the incense surrounding the Kali statue in the temple is deemed to be holy, and Chacha names his crime syndicate "The Holy Smokes". The film suggests that the Goddess

is watching the proceedings unfold before her and ultimately will decide who lives and who dies.

Cast

*Manish Patel as Singh *

as Mad Dave *Jass Bassi as Chacha *Jonathan Reason as Greaves *Peter Rnic as Big Kev *Jamille Riverol as Tia *Ashvin Kumar Joshi as Jaz *Fran Labbe as Abz *Sukie Ghajminger as Rocky *Yasmine Maya as Trudy *Native as Lloyd *Charles Udemezue as Errol *Richard Angol as Rufus *Peter Peralta as Billy Chan *Alex Fung as Li Fung *Ines Boughanmi as Chacha's daughter

References

External links

* 2003 films 2000s crime films British crime films British Indian films British independent films Films shot in London Films set in London 2003 directorial debut films 2000s English-language films 2000s British films {{2000s-UK-film-stub