Chicken Tikka Masala (2005)

Jimi is surprised when his family announces an arranged wedding to Simran, especially as he is gay and has a boyfriend, Jack. The easy way out? No - he decides to arrange something a little unorthodox instead.

Director:

Harmage Singh Kalirai

Writers:

Rony Ghosh (story), Roopesh Parekh (script and screenplay)

Stars:

Chris Bisson, Saeed Jaffrey, Sally Bankes

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chris Bisson	...	Jimi
Saeed Jaffrey	...	Chandra P Chopra
Sally Bankes	...	Vanessa
Peter Ash	...	Jack
Zohra Sehgal	...	Grandmother
Jamila Massey	...	Asha Chopra
Katy Clayton	...	Hannah
Sushil Chudasama	...	Ravi
Louisa Eyo	...	Marlene
Jinder Mahal	...	Simran (as Manjinder Mahal)
Shobu Kapoor	...	Minaxi Patel
Harish Patel	...	Harishbhai Patel
Dalu Solanki	...	Priest
Rony Ghosh	...	Mr. Shah
Vijayanti Uma Chauhan	...	Auntie

Storyline

Jimi, a doctor in Lancashire and the only son of loving Indian immigrants, is spineless. When his parents and grandmother arrange his marriage to a young woman from their home village, he hasn't the courage to tell them that he's already in love, with Jack, a man they think is his best friend. To queer the wedding, Jack's niece Hannah tells the bride-to-be that she's Jimi's daughter. Jimi's family swallows hard and decides to make the best of it by marrying Jimi to Hannah's mother, the blowzy, hard-drinking, foul-mouthed Vanessa. Jimi begs Vanessa to go through with it, so he can be with Jack. Is another resolution possible?

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Plot Keywords:

wedding | gay | large family | coming out to family | acceptance | 

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Taglines:

A big gay comedy about a big fat wedding

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Saeed Jaffrey appeared in Tandoori Nights (1985) and Masala (1991), before appearing in Chicken Tikka Masala (2005), making this film the third time in which he has appeared in titles which are references to ways of preparing food, the most common of which is chicken.

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Quotes

Jimi Chopra: What's all this "letting me down" shit about, anyway?
Ravi: Oh! Oh-ho-ho! My dear bro, looks like someone forgot to say that YOU are getting married.
Jimi Chopra: Shut up.
Ravi: And today just happens to be your engagement.

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Crazy Credits

"Special thanks... to all the souls, families and friends who put up with us for six weeks in Preston and elsewhere in the UK"

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Connections

References My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)

User Reviews

It is what it is

My comment is mainly a comment on the first commentator (the extra on the film) and his unhappy assessment of the film. I think his perspective indicates why an extra is an extra and a director is a director. The film was sweet, the acting sufficient, the experience of watching it a nice diversion from a busy work week. It wasn't "The Hours" (acting), or "The Matrix" (Special Effects), or even "The Color Purple" (Direction). Most movies won't be. But it also wasn't the crap fest that "vinny..." would lead you to believe. Sorry guy, just my 2 cents.

As to the movie itself, it was in the end very gay affirming (+ #1). It showed a world full of diverse and less than perfect people--you know, just like ours (+ #2)! It opened a door on one culture without excluding other cultures (+ #3). And I liked the music (+ #4).

Details

Official Sites:

Former official site for the film - DEFUNCT TLAReleasing.com - Official distributor's page for the film. [United States]

Country:

UK India

Language:

English Hindi

Release Date:

22 April 2005 (UK)

Also Known As:

PrzepisNAmilosc

Filming Locations:

England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP1,200,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Medtia Group, Seven Spice Productions Limited, B2B Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1