HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''It's a Wonderful Afterlife'' is a 2010 British comedy film directed by
Gurinder Chadha Gurinder Kaur Chadha, (born 10 January 1960) is a Kenyan-born British film director of Indian origin. Most of her films explore the lives of Indians living in England. The common theme in her work showcases the trials of Indian women residing ...
. The screenplay centres on an Indian mother whose obsession with marrying off her daughter leads her into the realm of serial murder. It was filmed primarily in English, with some
Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
and
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...
dialogue. The title is a reference to Chadha's personal attachment to Frank Capra's film '' It's a Wonderful Life''. Chadha also co-produced the film, and co-wrote the screenplay with her husband and producing partner,
Paul Mayeda Berges Paul Mayeda Berges (born September 11, 1968) is an American screenwriter and director. He is known for his work on films such as 2002's ''Bend It Like Beckham''. Early and personal life Of Japanese and a "bit of Basque" ancestry,
. The lead role is played by newcomer Goldy Notay, joining
Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. Her career in the Hindi cinema, Hindi film industry has spanned Shabana Azmi filmography, over 160 films, mostly within independent and neorealist paral ...
, Shaheen Khan,
Sendhil Ramamurthy Sendhil Amithab Ramamurthy (born May 17, 1974) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as geneticist Mohinder Suresh in the NBC sci-fi drama '' Heroes'' (2006–2010), Jai Wilcox in ''Covert Affairs'' (2010–2012), Gabriel "Gabe" ...
and
Sally Hawkins Sally Cecilia Hawkins (born 27 April 1976) is an English actress of stage and screen. She began her career on stage and then moved into film, for which she has received several accolades including a Golden Globe Award, in addition to nominatio ...
in the cast.


Plot

Mrs Sethi (
Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. Her career in the Hindi cinema, Hindi film industry has spanned Shabana Azmi filmography, over 160 films, mostly within independent and neorealist paral ...
) is a widow living in
Southall Southall () is a large suburban town in West London, England, part of the London Borough of Ealing and is one of its seven major towns. It is situated west of Charing Cross and had a population of 69,857 as of 2011. It is generally divided ...
who wants to marry off her only daughter, for she is alone and unhappy. Her daughter, Roopi ( Goldy Notay), is a little plump and opinionated. Mrs Sethi finds that all her matchmaking efforts are rudely rejected. She avenges this behaviour toward her daughter by murdering the failed dates using her culinary skills. A police hunt begins for a serial murderer using a killer
curry Curry is a dish with a sauce or gravy seasoned with spices, mainly derived from the interchange of Indian cuisine with European taste in food, starting with the Portuguese, followed by the Dutch and British, and then thoroughly internatio ...
. Mrs Sethi does not feel guilty until the spirits of her victims come back to haunt her. They are unable to
reincarnate Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new lifespan in a different physical form or body after biological death. In most be ...
until their murderer dies. Mrs Sethi must kill herself to free the spirits, but vows to get her daughter married first. The spirits realise that helping Roopi find a suitable husband before the police catch Mrs Sethi is in their best interests, and everyone begins to work together. Meanwhile, Roopi catches the eye of the young Sergeant investigating the case.


Cast

*
Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. Her career in the Hindi cinema, Hindi film industry has spanned Shabana Azmi filmography, over 160 films, mostly within independent and neorealist paral ...
as Mrs Sethi * Goldy Notay as Roopi *
Sendhil Ramamurthy Sendhil Amithab Ramamurthy (born May 17, 1974) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as geneticist Mohinder Suresh in the NBC sci-fi drama '' Heroes'' (2006–2010), Jai Wilcox in ''Covert Affairs'' (2010–2012), Gabriel "Gabe" ...
as Raj (D.S. Murthy) *
Sally Hawkins Sally Cecilia Hawkins (born 27 April 1976) is an English actress of stage and screen. She began her career on stage and then moved into film, for which she has received several accolades including a Golden Globe Award, in addition to nominatio ...
as Linda/Gitali *
Zoë Wanamaker Zoë Wanamaker (born 13 May 1949) is an American-born British actress who has worked extensively with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre. Wanamaker was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2001 by Qu ...
as Mrs Goldsmith *
Sanjeev Bhaskar Sanjeev Bhaskar (born 31 October 1963) is a British actor, comedian and television presenter. He is best known for his work in the BBC Radio 4 and BBC Two sketch comedy series ''Goodness Gracious Me (TV series), Goodness Gracious Me'' and as t ...
as The Curry Man * Catherine Balavage as Waitress * Shaheen Khan as Manjeet Kahl/The Kebab Woman * Adlyn Ross as Mrs Chakra/The Rolling Pin Woman * Ash Varrez as Mr Chakra/The Naan Man *
Mark Addy Mark Ian Addy is an English actor best known for his roles as DC Gary Boyle in the sitcom '' The Thin Blue Line'' (1995–96), Andy Richmond in '' Trollied'' (2011–13), King Robert Baratheon in the first season of ''Game of Thrones'' (2011) ...
as D.I. Smythe *
Preeya Kalidas Preeya Kalidas (born 21 June 1980) is an English singer and actress. She played Amira Masood in the soap opera ''EastEnders'', from 2009 to 2012. She released the single "Shimmy" in July 2010, taken from her proposed debut album ''(I'm Over It) ...
as Karishma *
Jimi Mistry James Patrick Mistry (born 20 March 1973) is a retired British actor. He is known for appearing in numerous films such as '' East Is East'' (1999), '' The Guru'' (2002), '' Touch of Pink'' (2004), ''Ella Enchanted'' (2004), '' The Truth About L ...
as Dev * Ray Panthaki as Jazz *
Don Warrington Don Warrington MBE (born Don Williams, 23 May 1951) is a Trinidadian-born British actor. He is best known for playing Philip Smith in the ITV sitcom '' Rising Damp'' (1974–78), and Commissioner Selwyn Patterson in the BBC detective series ' ...
as Chief Superintendent


Production

The film is a comedy which uses
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...
and Ealing-style humour. Depicting life amongst the Asian community in Britain, it is set in the west London suburb of Southall.


Development

Chadha conceived the film while watching 'The 100 Greatest Family Films' on
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
when narrator
Bob Hoskins Robert William Hoskins (26 October 1942 – 29 April 2014) was an English actor and film director. Known for his intense but sensitive portrayals of "tough guy" characters, he began his career on stage before making his screen breakthrough pl ...
introduced a wedding scene from her earlier film ''
Bend It Like Beckham ''Bend It Like Beckham'' is a 2002 Sports film, sports comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha from a screenplay by Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, and Guljit Bindra. The film stars Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Anu ...
'' at position 71. “It was the Indian wedding scene and the party, which was inter-cut with the football,” says Chadha, “and immediately I remembered how much fun we'd had shooting that scene. The wedding is so integral to our culture that I suddenly thought ‘How can I do another wedding scene without repeating myself?’ So I thought maybe I could do it with a horror spin, where everything goes awry. Much like the prom scene at the end of '' Carrie''.” Working with long-time collaborator and screenwriter Berges, Chadha spent two and half years writing the script. “I started seeing this crazy film, set in
Ealing Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...
, in the world of ''Bend It Like Beckham'' and yet in a completely different genre,” continues Chadha. “We worked on the script, came up with the idea of the mum, the plump daughter and these spirits that return.” Starting with the working title ''My Bloody Wedding'', Chadha and Berges created the character of Roopi, a young British Indian woman, and Mrs Sethi, her meddling mother. “Really it's an Ealing comedy about an Indian mum who lives with her daughter. The daughter is a little bit overweight, not exactly beautiful and has a broken engagement behind her,” explained Chadha. “People in the community have been really mean about this girl and the mother has had enough. So she devises all kinds of ways of killing people off, using Indian cooking methods. And of course, being Indian, we believe in reincarnation. The people she kills come back as spirits and these spirits can't work out why they've not been reincarnated.” Goldy Notay gained weight to play the role of Roopi, which she then promptly had to shed for her part in ''
Sex and the City 2 ''Sex and the City 2'' is a 2010 American romantic comedy film written, co-produced, and directed by Michael Patrick King. It is the sequel to the 2008 film ''Sex and the City','' which was based on the 1998–2004 HBO television series of ...
''.


Funding

''It's a Wonderful Afterlife'' was co-produced by the AIM-listed The Indian Film Company (TIFC) and Bend It Films in association with
Viacom 18 Motion Pictures Viacom18 Studios is an Indian film distribution and production company. It is a subsidiary of JioStar, a joint venture between Reliance Industries, Viacom18 and Disney India. Based in Mumbai, It is one of the first studio model based motion pic ...
.
HanWay Films HanWay Films is an independent British international sales, distribution and marketing company specializing in theatrical feature films. History In 1999, Jeremy Thomas founded international sales company HanWay Films with his colleagues Peter Wat ...
is handling worldwide sales and distribution, and pitched the film as ''
My Big Fat Greek Wedding ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' is a 2002 romantic comedy film directed by Joel Zwick and written by Nia Vardalos. The film stars Vardalos, John Corbett, Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine, Gia Carides, Louis Mandylor, Andrea Martin, and Joey Faton ...
'' meets ''
Shaun of the Dead ''Shaun of the Dead'' is a 2004 zombie comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Pegg stars as Shaun, a downtrodden London salesman who is caught alongside his loved ones in a zombie apocalypse. It also star ...
''.
Icon Film Distribution Icon Productions, also formerly referred to as Icon Entertainment International, is a production company founded in August 1989 by actor/director Mel Gibson and Australian producing partner Bruce Davey. Icon Productions LLC's headquarters were ...
is the UK distributor.


Filming

Principal photography began in London on 28 March 2009. Most of the filming took place in Southall in London and at
Ealing Studios Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in west London, England. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on th ...
. Chadha and Berges took inspiration for the horror elements from
Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is an English film director and producer. He directs films in the Science fiction film, science fiction, Crime film, crime, and historical drama, historical epic genres, with an atmospheric and highly co ...
's sci-fi classic ''
Aliens Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, a lifeform with ext ...
'',
Brian De Palma Brian Russell De Palma (; born September 11, 1940) is an Americans, American film director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for work in the suspense, Crime film, crime, and psychological thriller genres. ...
’s adaptation of
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...
's '' Carrie'', and
John Landis John David Landis (born August 3, 1950) is an American filmmaker and actor. He is best known for directing comedy films such as ''The Kentucky Fried Movie'' (1977), ''Animal House, National Lampoon's Animal House'' (1978), The Blues Brothers (f ...
’ 1981 horror classic ''
An American Werewolf in London ''An American Werewolf in London'' is a 1981 comedy horror film written and directed by John Landis. An international co-production of the United Kingdom and the United States, the film stars David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, Griffin Dunne and ...
''. Several scenes required SFX to create the effect of ghosts and
supernatural phenomena Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanings since the an ...
.


Music and sound

The soundtrack features a mix of licensed tracks, remixed tracks and original compositions, including mainstream music such as
disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...
and
hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
with the Desi dhol and
Bhangra Bhangra may refer to: * Bhangra (music), a genre of Punjabi music * Bhangra (dance), a folk dance of Punjab region * ''Bhangra'' (film), a 1959 Indian Punjabi-language film See also * Bhangara, Nepal Bhangara, Nepal is a village development c ...
. It includes songs by popular British-Asian and Bhangra artists such as
Panjabi MC Rajinder Singh Rai (born February 14, 1973), better known by his stage name Panjabi MC, is an English recording artist, rapper, record producer and DJ. He is best known for the worldwide Bhangra 2002 hit " Mundian To Bach Ke", which sold 10 m ...
and
Taz Taz or TAZ may refer to: Geography *Taz (river), a river in western Siberia, Russia *Taz Estuary, the estuary of the river Taz in Russia People * Taz people, an ethnic group in Russia ** Taz language, a form of Northeastern Mandarin spoken by ...
of Stereo Nation. It has 14 tracks in total, including
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (, ; born 9 December 1974) is a Pakistani Punjabi singer, primarily Qawwali, a form of Sufi devotional music. Khan is one of the most popular and highest paid singers in Pakistan. He is the nephew of Nusrat Fateh Ali Kha ...
,
Neeraj Shridhar Neeraj Shridhar is an Indian film playback singer, composer and singer-songwriter who was the lead vocalist of Indian pop and rock group Bombay Vikings. Bombay Vikings became popular with remix hits like "Kya Soorat Hai", "Woh Chali" and "Cho ...
of
Bombay Vikings Bombay Vikings are a pop group that combine Indian pop and classical music, formed in 1994 in Stockholm, Sweden. The band was started by Neeraj Shridhar, Oscar Söderberg, and Mats Nordenborg, and became popular with remixes of old Bollywood hi ...
, a makeover of a disco track by the
Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry Gibb, Barry, Robin Gibb, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in ...
, " Stayin Alive", re-composed by noted British-Asian DJ and music producer
Bally Sagoo Baljit Singh "Bally" Sagoo ( Punjabi: ਬਲਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਸੱਗੂ,) is a British-Indian record producer and DJ. Born in Delhi, India, Sagoo was raised in Birmingham, England. He entered the recording and entertainment industries ...
. Bally developed the track "Staying Alive Desified" by fusing traditional Bhangra beats with a performance from the Bee Gees tribute band Stayin' Alive UK. In a nod to the film's title, " Wonderful Life" by the British band
Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
features in its original form on the soundtrack. Promotional music videos feat. Stereo nation are choreographed by Rohit Chawla.


Reception

The film received overwhelmingly negative reviews, with ''
The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact (newspaper), compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until ...
'' calling it an "exceptionally lazy effort, which, like the similarly weak ''
Bride and Prejudice ''Bride and Prejudice'' (also known as ''Bride and Prejudice: The Bollywood Musical'') is a 2004 romantic comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha. The screenplay by Chadha and Paul Mayeda Berges is a Bollywood-style adaptation of Jane A ...
'', is more of a pun in search of a story than an actual fully-fledged idea". ''
The Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...
'' suggested, "The gags are brash, the plot is messy and there's an element of mild horror (culminating in a send-up of '' Carrie'') that feels totally random." It was described as "the worst British film of the year" by ''
The Express Express, The Expresss or EXPRESS may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * '' Express: Aisle to Glory'', a 1998 comedy short film featuring Kal Penn * '' The Express: The Ernie Davis Story'', a 2008 film starring Dennis Quaid * The Ex ...
''. Noyon Jyoti Parasara of AOL India stated "Every filmmaker has their bad days. And after watching ‘It's a Wonderful Afterlife’ I am confident that Gurinder Chadha is in one of hers."


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:It's A Wonderful Afterlife 2010 films 2010 comedy films British comedy films British Indian films Films directed by Gurinder Chadha Films set in London British independent films Films with screenplays by Paul Mayeda Berges Films with screenplays by Gurinder Chadha 2010s English-language films 2010s British films