When Gurinder Chadha walked into the room in a bright red Christmas sweater, despite Mumbai's unforgiving heat, we both burst out laughing. "Anything for Christmas Karma!" she jokes, fanning herself dramatically. That easy banter sets the tone for our conversation. I believe that the conversation flows effortlessly hence, swinging from memories to movies to the meaning of storytelling itself. We find ourselves talking about Christmases from her childhood. Family traditions stitched together with warmth, humour and the unmistakable flavour of a British-Indian home. She paints vivid pictures of masala-infused roast dinners, letters to Santa and the Queen's speech playing in the background. For Chadha, Christmas isn't just a holiday, it's a feeling, a connection and a reminder of compassion and togetherness that has followed her throughout her life and career. Excerpts...
How did you develop the story for Christmas Karma?It began before the pandemic. I was watching my favourite Christmas film, Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life. It is a beautiful film and I make my children watch it every year. This film teaches you everything you need to know about human connection. I would sit there and cry buckets every year. One particular year really touched me. And I said, you know what? I want to make a film that makes me feel like this every Christmas. It's a Wonderful Life was inspired by Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. So I also went back to that text. His story is set in Victorian England where there's a lot of disparity between the rich and the poor. His book was really a plea for empathy, humanity and compassion. And living in today's world, I felt that message is certainly true. I believe A Christmas Carol was written from the perspective of Guru Nanak Dev ji. Although Charles Dickens wouldn't have known that. But the concept of Ek Onkar or we are all one and connected is what Charles Dickens talked about.
The storyline is about an older man looking back at his life...
Yes Sood is an older guy, looking back at his life. When I was growing up, we had somebody we knew who had the same story. They had come from Uganda in 1972. They had grown up there. But Idi Amin had decided to expel all Indians who'd been brought there by the British. They were all displaced and many came to Britain as refugees. This guy came in, his father died in the refugee camp. It was a very hostile and unwelcoming environment for him. And because it all happened over Christmas, he was always traumatised by Christmas. He used to come to our house and ask us about whether we are trying to be white by celebrating Christmas. We would tell him that we have grown up with it. We would tell him that we always had a Christmas tree and would write letters to Santa. We also always had the big Christmas meal. My father used to put whiskey out for Santa. And in the morning we'd come down and be surprised that Santa had drunk all the whiskey. My mother would say, "Cha pakore bhi rakhdan aisi. (We should have kept some tea and snacks too)." We'd tell her that Santa does not eat Indian food. It was like that.
How did the collaboration with Priyanka Chopra Jonas happen?I had a meeting with the George Michael estate. George Michael was a big fan of Bend It Like Beckham, because I referenced him in the film. He had invited me for tea after that film as well. I was having a meeting with them and they said, you're making a Christmas film. I said, yes. And they said, why don't you take Last Christmas and do a Bollywood version? So it was their idea. Then I called my friend Priyanka. Her first reaction was 'Are you mad? I don't sing anymore.' That's a long time ago. I said, 'It'll be fun. It's a fun end sequence.' And bless her. She said she can't say no to me. She was in London. She came to the studio and kept shaking her head. I told her that she looks great. My dog is in the video with Priyanka. We ended up just shooting it in an hour or two. Then I called Anoushka Shankar. I asked her to play the lovely sitar. She told me she plays big concerts at the Royal Albert Hall. I told her, I know she is Ravi Shankar's daughter, but it would be great if she can join me on the project. Again, as an Indian woman, she joined to support me.
Is Priyanka a hands-on mother?Oh yeah... She brought her daughter to one of our work lunches in New York. She had everything ready to keep the little one occupied. It was a lovely thing to see.
Did you give her some tips for motherhood?Of course. I'm the authority, having had twins. But it is nice that we can speak as professional Indian women who work in the West, and also have an Indian heart and sensibility. People here don't realise, it can be very lonely out there as an Indian woman doing whatever you're doing. Especially when you are trying to tell stories because people have a Eurocentric perspective. For me to just get a film made with an Indian lead is a big political act.
Can you elaborate?I've really only been able to get the f