The Boy with the Topknot (2017)

One-off drama based on the critically acclaimed memoirs of British journalist Sathnam Sanghera. A touching, humorous and emotional rites-of-passage story.

Director:

Lynsey Miller

Writers:

Mick Ford, Sathnam Sanghera

Stars:

Sacha Dhawan, Deepti Naval, Anupam Kher

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sacha Dhawan	...	Sathnam
Deepti Naval	...	Sathnam's Mother
Anupam Kher	...	Sathnam's Father
Joanna Vanderham	...	Laura
Vineeta Rishi	...	Puli
Jaz Deol	...	Rajah
Anjli Mohindra	...	Bindi
Himmut Singh Datt	...	Young Sathnam (as Himmut Singh Dhatt)
Shaheen Khan	...	Aunt Sharanjit
Kriss Dosanjh	...	Uncle Mohinder
Aaron Thiara	...	Hardip
Ravin J. Ganatra	...	Dr. Dutta
Dinita Gohil	...	Kiran Chahal
Michael Shelford	...	Greg
Sharon Duncan-Brewster	...	Carol

Storyline

One-off drama based on the critically acclaimed memoirs of British journalist Sathnam Sanghera. A touching, humorous and emotional rites-of-passage story.

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Plot Keywords:

autobiographical | memoirs | based on real events | british asian | west midlands | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

British Broadcasting Corporation [United Kingdom]

Country:

UK

Language:

English Punjabi

Release Date:

8 November 2017 (UK)

Filming Locations:

Birmingham, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kudos Film and Television, Parti Productions, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was shot in only 18 days in and around the West Midlands.

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Goofs

When Satnam is taking his mother to the hospital, at first, his Mum isn't wearing her seatbelt. Then, after a cut, she suddenly is wearing it.

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Soundtracks

Intro
(uncredited)
Performed by The xx

User Reviews

Not sure if the screenplay didnt transfer over to the TV right

I was very much looking forward to watching this, as 2016's "my father killed me" was pure drama and the cast in The Boy with the Topknot made it even more appealing. However it was the story or the screenplay that made it confusing to what message Sathnam Sanghera was trying to deliver. At times it felt that it was too jumbled together, he was dealing with a multi racial relationship and then it went in very dark into his fathers mental health which he claimed to not knowing about it then connecting his sister suffering from the same mental health issues. However the best part was when his mother told her story through her friends, this delivered perfect writing. Also it raised my knowledge and appreciation of how families deal with mental health issues. It may have been due to the length of the one off drama it just could not include so much in such short length of time, maybe it should have been a two or three part drama. But also it maybe "My Father Killed Me" rose the bar so high, that I was just expecting much more. Its watchable but it didnt leave me wanting to recommend this as a much watch like "My Father Killed Me"