Ball & Chain (2004)

Saima is a second-generation East Indian-American, living in Austin, Texas, along with her dad, mom, and brother, Dev. Her dad considers her an old maid and wants her to get married to ... See full summary »

Director:

Shiraz Jafri

Writer:

Thomas Mortimer (screenplay)

Stars:

Sunil Malhotra, Lisa Ray, Purva Bedi

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sunil Malhotra	...	Ameet
Lisa Ray	...	Saima
Purva Bedi	...	Ruby
Kal Penn	...	Bobby
Asrani	...	Saima's dad
Ismail Bashey	...	Ashol
Johnny Kastl	...	Monty
Ather Ali	...	Dev
Brea Cola	...	Angela
Subash Kundanmal	...	Ameet's Dad
Noor Shic	...	Ameet's mom
Ulka Amin	...	Saima's mom
Shaan Puri	...	Deepy
Susan Aguirre	...	Fashion Show Organizer
Tiffany Lynn Drucker	...	Fashion Show Announcer (as Tiffany Drucker)

Storyline

Saima is a second-generation East Indian-American, living in Austin, Texas, along with her dad, mom, and brother, Dev. Her dad considers her an old maid and wants her to get married to Ameet much to her displeasure as she dislikes him. Her dad wants their marriage to be telecast via Internet so that their extended family in India can e-participate in the ceremony. After her not-so-good-looking friend, Ruby, gets married, albeit dramatically to Bobby, Ameet's friend, Her dad pressurizes her and even manages to convince her, she appears to change her mind but secretly meets with Ameet and together they create a series of misunderstandings with Ameet revealing his secret desire of becoming a male stripper during their formal engagement. They do succeed in getting their wedding canceled, but then Saima is faced with another challenge when her dad wants her to get married to Ashol, a Computer Programmer, who she also dislikes. The question does remain will Saima be compelled to go through ...

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Plot Keywords:

wedding | indian american | indian pakistani | arranged marriage

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Taglines:

Can't arrange the love? Arrange the wedding!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 May 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Arrangement

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,200,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Victory Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

References Matar o morir (1984)

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Soundtracks

"I Love You"
Written and Performed by Frank Lamonea
Published by Frank Lamonea

User Reviews

A romantic comedy, where eastern culture is prevalent in the west.

This film is a funny romantic comedy about Indian arranged marriage, with a cast that is very easy to like. I know this topic has been hit on many times, but this is different. The stereotypes in this picture are played with realism. Its about Ameet (Sunil Malhotra) and Saima( Lisa Rey), and their respective families wanting them to joined in marital bliss and the trials and tribulations that go into courting.

I found Sunil's performance to be quite natural, the film was bright and colorful... very easy on the eyes, and Lisa Ray looked stunning.

Kal Penn and Purva Bedi really added to the films funny bone.

After seeing this film i couldn't help but be impressed with how far filmmaking has come in this genre. I left the screening with a smile and a feeling that i just saw something really fresh and creative.