Britz (film)

Last updated
Britz
Written byPeter Kosminsky
Directed by Peter Kosminsky
Starring Riz Ahmed
Manjinder Virk
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Running time235 minutes
Release
Original release4 October 2007 (2007-10-04)

Britz is a two-part television drama film written and directed by Peter Kosminsky and first screened by Channel 4 in the United Kingdom in October and November 2007. [1]

Contents

Britz attempts to understand what would lead a second generation Muslim to turn against the country of their birth. The film makes references to the July 2005 London bombings, and the 2006 Forest Gate raid. [2]

The DVD was released in the UK on 5 November 2007.

Plot

The story concerns two siblings, Sohail and Nasima Wahid, who have been brought up in Bradford, West Yorkshire, a city with a large British Pakistani population. Both are now students, Sohail studying law in London and Nasima studying medicine in Leeds. With new government anti-terrorism legislation being used against Muslims in the UK in the wake of the September 11 attacks in New York, Sohail and Nasima are drawn in radically different directions. Without telling any of his family or friends, Sohail becomes a member of MI5, while continuing his studies, in the belief that he hopes to help to stop terrorists before the situation deteriorates further. In doing so, he learns that some of his neighbours and childhood friends are politically militant. Nasima is trying to integrate into British society, attending medical school and even dates a black British man. When her family finds out they send her back to Pakistan for a forced arranged marriage. Her boyfriend follows her, where he is beaten severely and imprisoned by her extended Pakistani family and is only saved by Sohail's intervention. She had already planned to meet the head of a terrorist training camp, and these events lead her to make her decision. She leaves behind her personal belongings and the terrorist group fake her death using a local female. This means she no longer exists and gives her the perfect opportunity not to change her mind and carry out her intentions of a mass suicide bombing.

Part one of the story is told from Sohail's point of view, while part two is from Nasima's point of view. The serial was filmed in London, Bradford, Leeds and Hyderabad, India, not Rawalpindi though part of the story is set there, especially in Part II.

Awards

Cast

Related Research Articles

<i>Warriors</i> (1999 TV series) British TV series or program

Warriors is a British television drama serial, written by Leigh Jackson, produced by Nigel Stafford-Clark and directed by Peter Kosminsky. It starred Matthew Macfadyen, Damian Lewis and Ioan Gruffudd. It was screened on BBC One on 20 and 21 November 1999. The serial tells the story of a group of British peacekeepers serving in a peacekeeping operation of the UNPROFOR in Vitez, in Bosnia during the Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing in 1993. The serial was released on VHS on 29 November 1999. On 7 January 2004 the serial was issued on DVD in the Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riz Ahmed</span> British actor and rapper

Rizwan Ahmed is a British actor and rapper. He has received several awards, including an Academy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award with nominations for two Golden Globe Awards and two British Academy Film Awards. In 2017, he was named in the Time 100 listing of the most influential people in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Kosminsky</span> British writer, director and producer (born 1956)

Peter Kosminsky is a British writer, director and producer. He has directed Hollywood movies such as White Oleander and television films like Warriors, The Government Inspector, The Promise, Wolf Hall and The State.

The Kaluchak Massacre was a terrorist attack on 14 May 2002 near the town of Kaluchak in the Indian state Jammu and Kashmir. Three militants attacked a Himachal Road Transport Corporation bus from the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh from Manali to Jammu and killed 7 people. After that they entered the family quarter of the Army and fired indiscriminately at the inmates, killing 23 persons, including 10 children, eight women and five Army men. The age of the children killed ranged from four to 10 years. Thirty-four people were injured in the attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sohail Ahmed</span> Pakistani actor

Sohail Ahmed, also known as Azizi, is a Pakistani actor, comedian and director.

Daniel Mays is an English actor having had roles in EastEnders (2000), Pearl Harbor, All or Nothing and Vera Drake (2001), Rehab (2005), Shifty and Red Riding (trilogy) (2008), Made in Dagenham and Ashes to Ashes (2010), Outcasts (2011), Mrs Biggs and Byzantium (2012), Line of Duty and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Des and White Lines (2020).

<i>Four Lions</i> 2010 British film directed by Chris Morris

Four Lions is a 2010 British political satire black comedy film directed by Chris Morris and written by Morris, Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong. The film, a jihad satire following a group of homegrown terrorist jihadis from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, stars Riz Ahmed, Kayvan Novak, Nigel Lindsay, Arsher Ali and Adeel Akhtar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ahsan Khan</span> British-Pakistani actor, producer, host and performer (born 1981)

Ahsan Khan is a British Pakistani actor, producer and TV host.

Hina Shaheen is a Pakistani TV, film stage actress and stage mujra lady.

Mohib Mirza is a Pakistani actor, director, playwright, television host and comedian.

<i>The Promise</i> (2011 TV serial) British TV series or program

The Promise is a British television serial in four episodes written and directed by Peter Kosminsky, with music by Debbie Wiseman. It tells the story of a young woman who goes to present-day Israel and Palestine determined to find out about her soldier grandfather's involvement in the final years of Palestine under the British mandate. It premiered on Channel 4 on 6 February 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manjinder Virk</span> English actress

Manjinder Virk is a British actress, director and writer. She has appeared in the television series Holby City (1999), Doctors (2000), The Bill (2004), The Ghost Squad (2005), Runaway (2009), Skins (2010), Monroe (2011), Hunted (2012) and Midsomer Murders.

<i>Dil-e-Beqarar</i> Pakistani TV series or program

Dil-e-Beqarar, is a Pakistani romantic television drama serial that was first aired on Hum TV on 13 April 2016 replacing Maana Ka Gharana. It airs every Wednesday at 7:00 pm PST. It stars Junaid Khan, Mansha Pasha and Hareem Farooq.

<i>The State</i> (British TV series) British TV series or program

The State is a four-part British television drama serial, written and directed by Peter Kosminsky, that dramatises the experiences of four young British Muslims who fly to Syria to join Islamic State. The series was originally broadcast in the UK by Channel 4, with all four parts airing on successive nights between 20 and 23 August 2017. The series was green-lit in July 2016, following extensive research by Kosminsky.

<i>Mulk</i> (film) 2018 Indian film directed by Anubhav Sinha

Mulk is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language legal drama film written, produced and directed by Anubhav Sinha. The film is set against the backdrop of a Muslim family and was distributed by Zee Studios. Filmed across in Varanasi and Lucknow, Mulk stars Rishi Kapoor and Taapsee Pannu.

Sana Javed is a Pakistani actress who appears in Urdu television. She made her acting debut with a minor role in the acclaimed television series Shehr-e-Zaat (2012). Javed is best known for portraying Sanam Khan in Geo TV's popular drama Khaani for which she received a nomination for Best Actress in Lux Style Awards.

<i>Raqeeb Se</i> 2021 Pakistani drama TV serial

Raqeeb Se is a Pakistani romantic drama television series produced by Momina Duraid, written by Bee Gul and directed by Kashif Nisar. It aired on Hum TV from 20 January 2021 to 26 May 2021 all under MD Productions. Raqeeb Se revolves around the repercussions of a love story stretched around one's entire life. It features an ensemble cast of Hadiqa Kiani, Nauman Ijaz, Sania Saeed, Iqra Aziz, Faryal Mehmood and Saqib Sumeer.

<i>Kala Doriya</i> Pakistani TV series or program

Kala Doriya is a Pakistani romance comedy drama television series that was first broadcast on Hum TV on 16 September 2022. It is produced by Momina Duraid under banner MD Productions. It is written by Saima Akram Chaudhry and directed by Danish Nawaz. The series stars an ensemble of Sana Javed, Osman Khalid Butt, Nadia Afgan, Zainab Qayyum, Adla Khan, Shahzad Noor, Samina Ahmed, and Khalid Anam.

References

  1. Eyre, Hermione (4 November 2007). "Review: This film makes a thriller out of British terrorism - but one that cuts too close to the bone". Independent. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  2. Maher, Shiraz (3 November 2007). "The failure of Britz". Prospect. Retrieved 2 August 2021.