Depiction Of Restrictive Cultural Obstacles In The Film Bend It Like Beckham

Success is never easy. Many renowned figures in today’s society have struggled with adversity in their daily lives. In essence, the difference between reaching and abandoning a goal is how a person addresses conflict throughout his or her journey. Similarly, in the film Bend It Like Beckham, both Jess and Mr. Bhamra face restrictive cultural obstacles, but they both tear down those barriers, revealing how impediments to success can always be overcome, no matter how much of a hindrance they are.

Throughout the film, Jess is encumbered by traditional Indian social expectations, but she continues to follow her true desire, disregarding society’s opinions about her. Her parents ban her from playing soccer because the accepted ethnic ideas about the extracurricular activities of Indian girls are in direct conflict with her love for her pastime. When she informs her parents about her continued affiliation with soccer, they immediately forbid her from playing the sport. This reveals how established Indian norms presented a setback to her strong predilection for soccer because these beliefs view sports as atypical for Indian girls. Therefore, Jess’ parents do not accept her passion and they hinder her ability to enjoy her hobby. This further illuminates how Jess’ road to success is not smooth, but rather it is a strenuous path with many hurdles along the way. Nevertheless, she does not submit to her parents’ wishes, as she lies to her parents to continue to play soccer without their knowledge. For example, she pretends to be sick to miss a family event so she can attend soccer practice instead, and as a result, she sidesteps the prohibition against her beloved hobby. This illustrates how challenges can always be overcome because Jess found a way to continue to follow her dreams, despite the disapproval and obstacles her parents set before her. Additionally, ethnic barriers exist culture-wide and it is human nature to give in to those obstacles because breaking down existing stigmas is more difficult than acquiescing to the accepted ideas. However, Jess fought those barriers and persevered, as she challenged the societal norms molded throughout centuries in pursuit of her individual goals.

Similarly, Mr. Bhamra, Jess’ father, faces cultural strife and eventually realizes obstacles must be overcome if he wants to achieve his dream. When he reached England, he wanted to follow his ambitions and play cricket for an English team. However, he is ridiculed for his turban and later denied membership in the cricket club. In this instance, Mr. Bhamra faces discrimination because of his Sikh identity. Although he imagined the players in the cricket club would welcome him as they have a shared interest, they did not look past their cultural differences and racial prejudice. Disheartened by this turn of events, he abandons his fondness for cricket and pursues a sport-free life, settling for a consistent, dull position as a security guard for Heathrow Airport in London. Even though Mr. Bhamra initially forgoes his love of cricket, he learns from his daughter’s zealous attitude for soccer. He sees the parallels in their situations and realizes he is not that different from his daughter after all. From her, he finds the understanding and courage to fight prejudice and reach his aspirations. Armed with this new awareness of possibilities, he plays cricket with Joe, Jess’ friend, in the concluding scene of the film, indicating he has not only accepted Jess’ chosen future but also learned to look past roadblocks in the pursuit of his desires. Mr. Bhamra’s epiphany illustrates how his journey to satisfaction is intertwined with struggle, and he must press through the obstructions in his life for the sake of his dream.

In Bend It Like Beckham, the cultural hurdles before Jess and Mr. Bhamra present opportunities to challenge and change society both within and outside their family. Jess defied the traditional Indian norms for women that her parents and society forced upon her, while Mr. Bhamra confronted cultural discrimination as an immigrant by following his daughter’s example. Despite struggle and conflict, Jess and her father find acceptance in pushing past the stereotypes and striving for their dreams.