It’s hard to believe it’s been twenty-one years since the cultural-setting ‘Bend It Like Beckham’ was released.
I can’t think of another female-led sports centred movie that has injected itself into the mainstream as prominently as Gurinder Chadha’s third feature film. The famed British director of Indian heritage went on to make several feel-good films, including the teenage rom-com ‘Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging’ and Bollywood-inflected version of a Jane Austen classic — ‘Bride & Prejudice’ (starring megastar Aishwarya Rai). But it would be her classic tale of a young Indian British teenager and her soccer dreams that she will be known for (at least — for now).
As the raucous fanaticism around women’s soccer reaches its height tonight when the Matilda’s face England in the semi-finals of the World Cup, we went back to watch the 2002 film to see how well it’s dated.
And, no surprise that it still holds up. Beautifully, in fact.
The strength of the film lies in the struggles of our heroine Jesminder “Jess” Bhamra (played by British American actor Parminder Nagra) — who is battling an entirely relatable fight against the pressures of her family.
Even those not born into an immigrant family, or those who don’t give a rat’s arse about sports or soccer find tremendous joy and inspiration from watching her overcome the conflicts in her life.
Her biggest challenge lies within her own family — ie. her parents, especially her mother, who demands that her daughters conform to the ideal form of a “Good Indian Woman” — ie. desirable for marriage by a Good Indian Man.
Her mother has already determined the kind of life she wants for her children. She ignores their own personal needs and desires, preferring to adhere to conventional roles in order to present themselves as a normal, Indian family.
‘Bend it Like Beckham’ is a feminist film because it centres a woman and her struggles against patriarchal and conservative systems of power — the family, traditions set by religion, oppressive rules set for women.
But the film also depicts the collision of identities faced by children of immigrant families.
Jess has to face so many hurdles — her family’s conservatism, the society’s sexism towards women who are good at sports (and therefore, physically dextrous), her own expectations to fulfil her parent’s dream for her to become a doctor.
Yes, it’s a film about soccer, but really, it could have been any other sport Jess is fighting to play. The heart of the story lies in her persistence in insisting on doing what she loves.
On the way, she gets some help — and interestingly (perhaps unfortunately too), it is only the male characters that rally behind Jess.
There is the coach, Joe (played by former It Boy Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who actively tries to convince Jess of her potential to play as a professional; her father, who reluctantly complies to his wife’s strict moulding of their daughter, though ultimately champions Jess’ dreams in the end; her gay best friend, Tony, who encourages Jess to leave her sister’s wedding to play in the finals of an important tournament.
Jess’ teammate and friend Jules (played by a 17-year old Keira Knightley) is of course, also a tremendous champion of her friend. She too, must fight against her mother’s rigid ideas about how a woman should be. Jules’ dad is the dad we all want — unconditionally supportive and consistently enthusiastic.
Thankfully, things have improved since 2002 for young women who want to play sports professionally. One of my favourite scenes in the film is when Jess is in Jules’ bedroom and Jules’ switches on her television to a screaming montage:
“W.U.S.A SOCCER!” (Women’s United Soccer Association) followed by footage of women playing in front of huge stadium crowds. We watch as the camera cuts to Jess and Jules’ face – this is what it looks like to have big dreams.
Sure — the film’s not perfect, but the flaws have simply turned into delightfully hilarious quips: the best being this line from Joe, when Jess is upset after being racially attacked:
“Jess, I’m Irish. Of course I’d understand what they feels like.”
Fortunately, race relations have become a bit more nuanced in the past two decades. Unfortunately, few films since have told a female-centred story with as much humour, heart and spirit.