'Bend It Like Beckham' musical to hit London theatre in May

A musical version of British-Indian filmmaker Gurinder Chadha's worldwide box-office hit 'Bend It Like Beckham' is all set for its West End premiere here in May.
The theatrical, which portrays the popular tale of British-Indian culture clash, will be directed by Chadha and produced by Sonia Friedman Productions and Deepak Nayar Productions.
"It's very exciting. I think music is very important to my psyche. With this musical I have been able to combine my love of music with my storytelling skills," Chadha said.
'Bend It Like Beckham the Musical' will open at the Phoenix Theatre in London on May 15. The announcement came in October 2014.

Following a series of auditions and workshops, lead role of a football crazy Jess, played by Parminder Nagra on celluloid in 2002, will be taken over by British stage and television actress Natalie Dew.
The role of Jess's best friend, played by Keira Knightley on screen, will be essayed by Lauren Samuels.
British-Indian actress and singer Preeya Kalidas, who played one of Jess's cousins in the film, will take on the role of her older sister Pinky on stage.
The show will also star Jamie Campbell Bower as football coach and Tony Jayawardena will take on Anupam Kher's screen role of Jess' father.