Bend It like Beckham

The movie that I chose to do this report on is titled, ‘Bend it Like Beckham.’ It is about a Sikh girl who is being raised in England. This girl is confronted with a lot of issues pertaining to her culture and religion and how these both clash with the culture of England. She wants to do things that her fellow colleagues are doing, but is not allowed due to her parent’s strict respect of their religion. In the following pages, I will first explain the significance of the man on the wall in the picture. Then I will move on to cultural issues and their significance with the marriage scenes. The last section will discuss the overall reason for Jess not being able to play soccer.

Sikhism is a religion that was started by a man named Guru Nanak Dev around 500 years ago. He wanted to spread a simple message; “we are all one, created by the one creator of all creation.” During this time India was being split up by differing religions. He simply took no sides, yet respected them all. This is who is in the picture that resides above the mantle. He is considered the first and most important of the ten Gurus. In researching the culture of the Sikhs, I found that they treat these Gurus as Christians would treat saints. (sikhs.org) As Catholics pray to certain saints for certain things, the Sikhs do the same with their Gurus. Whenever they feel they need the help or guidance of one of the Gurus, they simply pray to them. As well as praying to these Gurus, they also do three other things. The first is called Nam Japa. This means “To get up each day before sunrise, to clean the body, meditate on God’s name and recite the Guru’s hymns to clean the mind. Throughout the day, continuously remember God’s name with every breath.”(sikhnet) The second thing is called Dharam di Kirat Karni. Translated, this means, “To work and earn by the sweat of the brow, to live a family way of life, and practice truthfulness and honesty in all dealings.”(sikhnet) The third and last thing expected of these followers is called, Vand Ke Chakna. This means, “To share the fruits of one’s labor with others before considering one’s self. Thus, to live as an inspiration and support to the entire community.”(sikhnet)

During the wedding scenes, I noticed that in one of them they give each other bracelets or rings. At first, it struck me that these are probably what they use instead of wedding rings like we would use. I found that this is not true. They also use wedding rings around the finger to symbolize the bondage of marriage. These bracelets that are worn around the wrist are actually called a Kara. These are to represent, “A steel circle, worn on the wrist, signifying bondage to Truth and