Stars:
Om Puri,
Linda Bassett,
Jimi Mistry,
Chris Bisson,
Jordan Routledge,
Ian Aspinall,
Madhav Sharma,
Archie Panjabi
Director:
Damien O'Donnell
Summary: George Khan is a proud Pakistani, and a chip shop owner. He has seven children and believes that he is raising them to be respectable Pakistanis. But the kids have other ideas... A hilarious story of what happens when two cultures meet in one family. Also contains cast and crew interviews and behind the scenes footage.
Set in the early 1970s, EAST IS EAST, directed by Damien O'Donnell, follows the lives of a Pakistani-English family living in Northern England. George Khan (Om Puri), a proud Pakistani immigrant, and his British wife, Ella (Linda Bassett), run a fish and chip shop, while raising their seven children. George is determined to honor Pakistani tradition by arranging marriages for each of the children, whether they like it or not. When the Khan kids, including the nightclubbing Tariq (Jimi Mistry), the artsy Saleem (Chris Bisson), and the shy, parka-wearing Sajid (Jordan Routledge), begin to rebel against their forceful father, their mother also joins the household mutiny. During an awkward nuptial arrangement meeting with the snobby Shahs and their two unappealing daughters, the family's conflict hits its peak with surprising results.
With his first feature film, O'Donnell convincingly recreates the 1970s setting and carefully avoids glossing over the Khan family's difficulties. Puri and Bassett are excellent as the well-meaning parents, while Routledge is particularly charming as the reclusive youngest son. A quirky comedy that doesn't shy away from tense drama, EAST IS EAST is a truly unique film.