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Plot summary for
Namastey London (2007)

Gorgeous and leggy Katrina Kaif appears as Jasmeet or Jazz, the very-British daughter of a very Indian father Manmohan Singh (Rishi Kapoor). With her ability to down several shots of vodka, and conjure up ex-boyfriends and memories of oft had one-night stands, she is adept at scaring away all the good desi boys, her parents try to arrange for her. However when she really gets serious about her thrice-divorced, English boss, Charlie Brown (Clive Standen), Dad gets worried enough to spirit her away to India under the guise of a sight-seeing vacation. Only being a typical desi Dad, he's actually planning to get her married to the first "achha ladka" he can lay his hands on. Thus starts a series of "boy viewings" where we are introduced to men obsessed with Indian Idol, the saas-bahu serials, and over-analysis. Jazz is vastly amused but really starts to feel the pressure when Dad carts them all to his home-town in dear old Punjab, and everyone begins to drown in a surfeit of the two staples of clichéd Punjabidom - desi ghee, and tall glasses of lassi. Enter the son of the household, the local Jat, Arjun. Resplendent in a pink kurta, Arjun not only helps repair Manmohan's stranded car, but is also skilled at serenading Jazz, in full view of her father. His masculinity thus established, he becomes the apple of Manmohan's eye, and Manmohan decides that this particular Neanderthal is just the man for Jazz. Jazz of course, thinks otherwise.

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CAST OF NAMASTEY LONDON:

KATRINA KAIF as JASMEET SINGH

Katrina Kaif is Jasmeet Singh (Jazz). Born and brought up in London, you understand why she loves and wants everything that’s western, including a husband. You also understand her anger and rebellion when he father forces her to marry a stranger. But does Jazz realize the folly of her stubborn behavior? Or will she wake up too late? Only Katrina with her mix of western sensibility and eastern vulnerability could have pulled off this role of a confused girl, with her soul intact but her heart leading her astray.

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CAST OF NAMASTEY LONDON:

UPEN PATEL as IMRAN KHAN

Upen Patel is Imran Khan. He is a Pakistani, but born and brought up in London like Jazz. Naturally if their fathers are best friends, so are they. He completely identifies with Jazz’s obsession for everything British as he himself has a Brit girlfriend. But when push comes to shove, when his very identity and religion are at stake, he realizes how much wronged he is by giving Jazz the wrong advice.

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CAST OF NAMASTEY LONDON:

RISHI KAPOOR as MANMOHAN SINGH

Rishi Kapoor is Manmohan Singh. This ‘angrezi beti ka desi baap’ is horrified to discover how obsessed his only daughter is with everything western. He does what any other Indian father would do – gets her married to a boy of his choice, without realizing the repercussions. As the loving father who will go to any lengths to safeguard his daughter’s happiness, Rishi Kapoor’s Manmohan Singh will strike a chord immediately with all those who have faced a similar situation in their lives.

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CAST OF NAMASTEY LONDON:

AKSHAY KUMAR as ARJUN

Akshay Kumar is Arjun, whose joy knows no bounds when he marries the beautiful and sophisticated Jazz. But the joy soon turns to despair when he realizes this marriage means nothing to her and she is determined to marry her British boyfriend. As a man who is forced to watch his wife romancing another, as the determined lover who will go to any lengths to make his beloved happy, Akshay’s sensitive but strong; helpless but determined Arjun will win everybody’s hearts. Will stubborn Jazz be the exception?

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CAST OF NAMASTEY LONDON:

JAVED SHEIKH as PARVEZ KHAN

Javed Shaikh is Parvez Khan. This talented actor returns to his ethnic roots by playing a Pakistani taxi driver, whose best friend happens to be an Indian, Manmohan Singh. He loves his son to death but cannot accept his live in relationship with a British girl. As the anguished father of a wayward son, the pathos and dignity he brings to his role must be seen to be believed.

What happens when you transplant an English rose to a countryside in Punjab and expect her to thrive in an alien environment? The rose will either die or rebel. That’s exactly what Jazz, rather Jasmeet does when her father Manmohan Singh brings her to India and gets her married to Arjun, a rough and tough farmer who can barely speak English. But Jazz too is equally determined to marry Charlie Brown her British boyfriend. Caught in this emotional tug of war between father and daughter is poor Arjun, who is helplessly and hopelessly in love with his beautiful but unyielding wife.

In Namastey London, this emotional and dramatic tug of war will determine whether love is more about giving or taking? Whether Indian values must surrender to Western culture? Whether Jazz will win or Jasmeet.

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Namaste London film is about a Punjabi boy trying to win over an NRI girl's heart. It was shot in London for over three months. It’s a love story about how today’s Indian youth both in India and England perceive love. The film will star Vipul’s lucky mascot, Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Rishi Kapoor, newcomer Upen Patel and six British actors.
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NAMASTEY LONDON: THE REVIEW:
By Taran Adarsh

First things first! It’s said that NAMASTEY LONDON is the 2007 adaptation of Manoj Kumar’s immensely likable PURAB AUR PACHHIM. Sure, NAMASTEY LONDON is about a spoilt British girl of Indian origin and a desi guy, but the similarities end there. In fact, NAMASTEY LONDON also bears slight similarity to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s classic love story HUM DIL DE CHUKE SANAM, with the husband allowing his wife to follow her heart, helping her unite with her lover.

Similarities apart, NAMASTEY LONDON stands proudly on its feet!

After attempting diverse themes such as AANKHEN and WAQT – THE RACE AGAINST TIME, Vipul Amrutlal Shah attempts a love story with panache. But let’s not mistake NAMASTEY LONDON to be one of those candyfloss entertainers that makers/writers have visited and re-visited over and over again. Vipul Amrutlal Shah and writer Suresh Nair blend romance, drama and humor in right proportions and the outcome is a delicacy that whets your appetite.

What works? Plenty of things!

NAMASTEY LONDON is not one of those usual romantic films. The clash of cultures, the widening gap between parents and kids, also racism -- judging someone by the color of the skin -- NAMASTEY LONDON tackles it all. At the same time, it evokes patriotic feelings at vital points in the story.

The engagement ceremony -- when Akshay gives it back to the arrogant Englishman -- deserves brownie points and also an ovation. Besides, when the Indians/Pakistanis win the game of Rugby against the goras, your joy knows no bounds. The game involves you, you feel as if you were one among those cheering for the Indians/Pakistanis.

NAMASTEY LONDON abounds in humorous moments. The entire ‘Bharat Darshan’ track, starting with Rishi Kapoor interviewing the prospective grooms, and also Rishi’s large Punjabi khandaan [especially Bebe], tickle your funny bone. In fact, the Bebe-Katrina interaction is truly funny!

There’s an undercurrent of tension beneath the cool exterior. Katrina’s volte-face minutes before the intermission hits you like a ton of bricks. In the second hour, Akshay’s simple strategy to win back Katrina is very believable. The reason why this character works is because the guy never indulges in any herogiri or adopts any illogical steps to woo her back. He loves her unconditionally and that’s his ‘weapon’ to crush the gora rival, who happens to be Katrina’s lover.

Vipul Amrutlal Shah impressed you in his directorial debut AANKHEN. With WAQT, he climbed the ladder. Now, with NAMASTEY LONDON, it’s a leap. In fact, NAMASTEY LONDON is his most accomplished work so far. Love stories are done to death in Bollywood and no matter how different you claim your film is, comparisons with the successful films of yore are inevitable. Despite that, NAMASTEY LONDON retains its individuality!

To sum up, NAMASTEY LONDON is addictive stuff. You watch it once, you wanna watch it again!

What happens when you transplant an English rose to a countryside in Punjab? Will it thrive in an alien environment? The rose will either die or rebel. That’s exactly what Jazz aka Jasmeet [Katrina Kaif] does when her father Manmohan [Rishi Kapoor] brings her to India and gets her married to Arjun [Akshay Kumar], a farmer.

But Jazz is equally determined to marry Charlie Brown [Clyde Stenden], her British boyfriend. Caught in this emotional tug of war between father and daughter is poor Arjun, who is helplessly and hopelessly in love with his beautiful but unyielding wife.

NAMASTEY LONDON fits the description of a true-blue Hindi film to the T. Writer Suresh Nair’s screenplay is most convincing, the writing is foolproof, with no loose ends. Only thing, while the first hour moves at a lightening pace, the pace drops in the second half. In fact, minimal trimming in the post-interval portions would only make the narrative tighter. Another aspect that might curtail its prospects [at smaller centres mainly] is the generous usage of English language at vital points. Agreed, there are sub-titles in Hindi to decipher what’s going on, but it could prove to be an obstacle.

Himesh Reshammiya’s music is excellent. The tunes come instantly on your lips and what elevates the songs are its picturization. ‘Chakna Chakna’ and ‘Dilruba’ are compositions that merit a mention. Jonathan Bloom’s cinematography is exceptional. The D.O.P. does complete justice to the stunning locales of U.K. as also the lush green fields of Punjab. Dialogues [Ritesh Shah, Suresh Nair] are natural to the core.

If you felt Akshay Kumar was getting typecast in comic roles in film after film, you need to watch him in NAMASTEY LONDON. One of his finest performances so far, NAMASTEY LONDON also marks the coming of age of an actor who was often dubbed as an action hero or a funster. Akshay not only wins the heart of Katrina on screen, he’s sure to win the hearts of millions of moviegoers with a terrific portrayal in this film.

Katrina is a revelation. The actor surprised you with a confident performance in HUMKO DEEWANA KAR GAYE and now, in NAMASTEY LONDON, she comes up with a spirited performance yet again. She handles the complex part with remarkable ease. The pretty lass is only getting better with every film!

Rishi Kapoor is in terrific form. Upen Patel is highly competent. The actor has a substantial role which he carries off skillfully. Ritesh Deshmukh [sp. app.] is wonderful.

Nina Wadia [Katrina’s mother] is first-rate. Clyde Stenden [Katrina’s fiancé] is excellent. Javed Sheikh is proficient.

On the whole, NAMASTEY LONDON is a superior product that blends romance, drama and humor beautifully. At the box-office, the film has all it takes to woo the moviegoers. However, the opening [evening shows on Friday specifically] would be affected due to the crucial India versus Sri Lanka cricket match [World Cup], but this truly well-made film should gather speed from Saturday onwards. In Overseas too, the film should fare exceedingly well.

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Punjab meets London

A British girl of Indian origin is married to a Punjabi guy against her wishes. She decides to leave her farmer husband to be with her British boyfriend. How the husband wins her love is what the film is about.

‘Namastey London’ is about discovering one’s roots. Through a touching love story the movie raises a very pertinent question: Do our Indian values need to surrender to western culture?
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WHO SAYS YOU CAN BUY MILK BY THE PINT WHEN YOU HAVE THE ENTIRE COW:
Arjun is a rough and tough farmer full of trademark Punjabi humour. His heart almost bursts out of his robust chest with joy when he marries a beautiful and sophisticated girl from London. Proudly he says to his friends: “I’ll be the first guy in my entire clan to have suhaag raat in London”. Little did he know that his joy would be short-lived.
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Her real name is Jasmeet. But she prefers to be called Jazz. She has been raised in Britain and is absolutely obsessed with western culture. To bring her closer to her Indian roots, her father marries her to Arjun, a farmer from Punjab. But she refuses to acknowledge the marriage.

Manmohan is Jasmeet’s father. He is worried about his daughter’s obsession with everything western. The only solution he finds is to get her married to an Indian who will make her realize the importance of Indian values. So he gets Jazz married to Arjun, without realizing the possible outcome.
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Imran is a Pakistani living in Britain. Like Jazz, he too has been born and brought up in London and is therefore out of touch with his roots. He has a British girlfriend.

Javed Sheikh as Parvez Khan
Javed Sheikh is a famous Pakistani actor. In the film he plays a Pakistani taxi driver. He is a very good friend of Manmohan Singh and is worried about his son Imran’s (Upen Patel) inclination towards everything western. He also cannot accept Imran’s live-in relationship with a British girl.
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MORE MILK FOR NUFF FOR SURPASSING 100K:

Jazz (Katrina) is married to Arjun (Akshay) against her wishes. Although Arjun loves her more than anything, Jazz sees him as just a rustic farmer who cannot even speak English properly. She refuses to acknowledge the marriage and longs to be with her British boyfriend Charlie Brown.

Arjun’s love for Jazz remains unchanged even when he realizes that she feels nothing for him. A good-hearted man that he is, he won’t force anything upon her. He decides to win her love instead.

The movie also stars Shaana Diya who plays Katrina’s close friend. Shaana, too, is shown born and raised in London, but her character is very close to Indian culture and tradition and wants Katrina to get married to an Indian. Jazz returns to her former life and wants to marry her British boyfriend.
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In pursuit of his beloved, Arjun lands in London. Soon he begins to win everyone’s heart with his simple, straight-hearted and jubilant nature. But the question is: will he win Jazz’s love?
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The intrinsic message of ‘Namastey London’ is that true love means giving, rather than demanding. The movie’s protagonist Arjun is the embodiment of this.

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The movie also gives a message that Indian culture or values are in no way inferior to the western ones. The film’s story is about returning to one’s roots.

There is also an angle of Indo-Pak friendship provided by Rishi Kapoor and Javed Sheikh.

A scene from Namastey London, looking more like one from India

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