Spice Girls Story: Nina’s Heavenly Delights

There are plenty of surprises cooking up in the Shah family's Indian restaurant in Pratibha Parmar's debut feature, Nina's Heavenly Delights. Described by one of the cast as "My Beautiful Restaurant," the film's director acknowledges that ground- breaking launderette drama's influence upon her colourful and amusing romp across some of the boundaries that can separate people from each other. This is an uplifting film celebrating diversity and it's a real change to find Glasgow settings used to capture something of the real vibrance and vitality of that great city. James MacGregor reports on what's on the film's menu.

The story of the film revolves around Nina Shah (Shelley Conn), an independent-minded young Scottish Indian woman, who returns to her family for her father's funeral, having previously run away, avoiding a planned marriage. She meets up again with childhood friend Bobbi (Ronny Jhutti), now a wannabe Bollywood drag queen and encounters Lisa (Laura Fraser), daughter of a Glasgow bookmaker, who now owns half of the family restaurant The New Taj, which has been lost by her father in a bet.

Then, Nina discovers her father had been invited to compete in The Best of the West Curry Competition for the third time, giving The New Taj a chance to regain its former reputation and end its financial crisis. In a whirlwind of activity, Nina decides to take on the challenge. This means coming up directly against ace rivals The Jewel in The Crown owned by Raj (Art Malik). Raj has offered to buy The New Taj and the deal will now have to be put off. Just like the planned marriage of Nina to Raj's his son Sanjay (Raji James), chef at The Jewel, a spurned bridegroom who has already been publicly humiliated once by Nina's running away. The scene is now set for a televised clash of cooking dynasties. Determined for her father's sake, to claim the Best in The West trophy for the third time, in the rush that follows, Nina, helped by restaurant partner Lisa, finds herself in an emotional turmoil when she realises she is falling in love.

Further revelations arise en route to the final, showing that the Shahs have as many surprise secrets as any other family, but deep affection for one another overrides differences to create family harmony and ultimately, personal happiness.

Shelley Conn and Laura Fraser play the emotionally drawn duo with fine screen subtlety.  They both captivate the camera and win hearts and minds with tender and anguished portrayals of the tensions of unrequited love, from tentative first-love exchanges to the intense emotional rush of consummated desire. They must have known, everyone would be looking out for this.  No pressure there then; or so they make it appear. The hallmark of good acting  and good direction, is when the playing is at its most natural and here we have it. There is nothing queer about this performance of lovers entwined.

You certainly will not miss the stellar performance coming from Ronny Jhuti as Bobbi, the would-be Bollywood drag queen. Camp as could be and outrageously amusing, played with flamboyant style, but also with flashes of real emotional depth feeding on full understanding of the story. An admirable Veena Sud gives a dignified portrayal of an outwardly calm, but deeply troubled widow Suman, an Indian mother experiencing very unsettling revelations about her offspring. And yet, while harbouring a far greater secret of her own, she is generous enough to admit that, even within her conventional wisdom, she can still learn about the meaning of love from her children. That comes across clearly, with dignity, in Veena Sud's playing of Suman.

Kulvinder Ghir charicatures some of his own TV performances as the Best of The West Curry Competition's delightfully OTT TV host. Profuse yet stylised, he's far more compelling than many presenters who do this for real, but not as well. When,  in a moment of high emotion,  Nina and Lisa flee the live TV studio, his character's perplexed and tentative act of self-propulsion lurching forward to man the pans, so preventing culinary tragedy, counts as an act of emancipation for the Indian male, making almost furtive, embarrassed, steps into a woman's kitchen.  Very funny indeed.

Elaine C. Smith effectively convinces that the Indian people in the film must surely be from Baillieston as well, because she's clearly known them for years. Her magnanimous and naturally warm Aunti Mame's perfect comic timing gives her away, however. She's really a skilful actress, with a comedienne residing within. We need to see more of this new Elaine C. Smith on the big screen, or any screen for that matter.

There's no want of colour and spectacle in this film. No Glasgow grime is needed here, but the city's locations are all used to great effect as the backdrop for this story, whether overlain with bright colours rubbed across like pastel to set a visual tone, or captured in an early morning crane shot as Korma Radio's breakfast show rises to meet the day with a cheerful host delivering full flavour morning radio. Glasgow has life and colour and character in this screen story. About time, too.

The other silent star of the film is the food. We really are served up with a visual feast of  screen delights. Indian restaurants close to cinemas need to prepare for an after-show rush when the patrons come out; they will be hungry, guaranteed. If we still had smell-o-vision and it could manage full olfactory justice to the spices, the rush would be a crush. Those critics who did not appreciate this film probably watched it on an empty stomach.

Nina's Heavenly Delights marks a very successful collaboration between director Pratibha Parmar and screenplay writer Andrea Gibb who,  in scripting Parmar's story, gave the narrative that essential authority and polish that make the characters as much Scottish as they are Indian. Once the basics are right, you can rely on a cast as competent and creative as this to really breathe life into those characters.

Add to that Simon Dennis's superb digital cinematography, sharp focus but with warm and tactile skin tones: here's a man who really  knows how to light HD. - And the results on screen are Hollywood even on a budget that wouldn't kit out  the wardrobe for a real spectacular.

One thing the film is not; contrary to what some reviews have said, this is not a Bollywood movie. It pays a respectful homage to populist Hindi cinema, certainly, but although there are spectacular sequences of dance and song, they are integrated into the plot as carefully as they have been choreographed. They bring oriental flavour to the Glasgow setting and applaud the diversity of creativity and expression that Bollywood brings to the silver screen.

This film is not easy to categorise. Romantic comedy probably comes closest to the flavour; although tensions rise easily enough, they are never so acute to be seen as truly dramatic, but the narrative is successful. It is engrossing and there are genuine surprises along the way - as well as insights into relationships that we all have shared in our own personal experiences.

Nina's Heavenly Delights is a universal love story, a slice of life, carved out of a multicultural community, served up in a style that effectively titillates the taste buds and will stimulate cinematically jaded appetites. Exotic, certainly. Sweet, without cloyness. Spicy and highly enjoyable.  A gourmet choice.

On the menu in UK Cinemas from September onwards, on DVD in UK from 22nd January 2007 2007. US theatrical release in 2007.