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The Boy with the Topknot

Drama. Born to traditional Punjabi parents and growing up in Wolverhampton, Sathnam has gone on to build a very different life for himself in London.

Based on the critically acclaimed memoir The Boy with the Topknot by journalist Sathnam Sanghera.

Born to traditional Punjabi parents and growing up in Wolverhampton, Sathnam was the first member of his family to go to university and has gone on to build a very different life for himself in London. Excelling in his career as a columnist for The Times and living with his lovely English girlfriend Laura, he keeps this life very separate to the one he has in Wolverhampton. He cannot bring himself to tell his family he is going to be the first one to marry out of the tightly knit Sikh community he was brought up in.

As he tries to gather the courage to introduce Laura to his family, he is sidelined when he discovers a painful family secret which turns his world upside down and forces him to revaluate his priorities and choices. Sathnam realises he must bring his two separate worlds together or risk losing everything and in so doing, he has to be completely honest with the two main loves of his life - mother and girlfriend - for the first time ever.

This is a touching, humorous and emotional rites-of-passage story about a second-generation Indian man growing up in Britain and how he tries to juggle family, love life and career. It explores the sensitive subject of mental illness with courage and honesty, and by being authentic and specific to Sathnam and his family, it tells a universal truth about the human heart.

1 hour, 28 minutes

Last on

Sat 18 Aug 2018 21:45
BBC Two

Clips

See all clips from The Boy with the Topknot (2)

Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:16

    Sea of Bees

    Gone

  • 00:37

    Agnes Obel

    It's Happening Again

  • 00:49

    Wham!

    Club Tropicana

  • 00:50

    Wham!

    Club Tropicana

  • 01:12

    The xx

    Intro

Credits

Sathnam Sacha Dhawan
Sathnam's Mother Deepti Naval
Sathnam's Father Anupam Kher
Laura Joanna Vanderham
Puli Vineeta Rishi
Rajah Jaz Deol
Bindi Anjli Mohindra
Young Sathnam Himmut Singh Dhatt
Aunt Sharanjit Shaheen Khan
Uncle Mohinder Kriss Dosanjh
Hardip Aaron Thiara
Dr Dutta Ravin J Ganatra
Kirin Chahal Dinita Gohil
Greg Michael Shelford
Carol Sharon Duncan-Brewster
Matt Benjamin Wainwright
Aunty Jugi Shobu Kapoor
Sikh Minicab Driver Satnam Bhogal
Young Sathnam's Mother Kiran Sonia Sawar
Young Sathnam's Father Sam Otto
Young Aunt Sharanjit Manpreet Bambra
Young Uncle Mohinder Maanuv Thiara
Laura's Father Mick Ford
Laura's Mother Joanna David
Puli's Son Hukam Singh Sethi
Rajah's Wife Chandeep Uppal
Puli's Husband Pushpinder Chani
Bindi's Husband Zar Damani
Locksmith Barrett Robertson
Executive Producer Diederick Santer
Executive Producer Manda Levin
Writer Mick Ford
Producer Nisha Parti
Director Lynsey Miller
Production Company Kudos Film & Television Company

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