Blinded By The Light

Heart-warming new comedy drama based on British journalist Sarfraz Manzoor's rite of passage memoir Greetings From Bury Park, chronicles his experiences as a British Muslim boy growing up in 1980s Luton and the impact Bruce Springsteen's lyrics had upon him.

The producers explain: "The film is a hybrid musical that is firmly rooted in the great British tradition of quirky comedies, but with a dash of youthful exuberance inspired by John Hughes's films from the 1980s."

Sarfraz Manzoor explains: "Growing up in eighties Luton as the working class son of Pakistani Muslim immigrants my world felt very small. In the music of Bruce Springsteen I found both hope and wisdom on how I could transcend my circumstances and make my dreams to be a writer come true. The fact that I was so affected by Springsteen's songs shows just how powerfully music can transcend race, religion, nationality and class. Blinded By The Light is also a tribute to my late father whom I often fought in my teenage years not realising his generation also had dreams they were not able to follow."

Manzoor and director Gurinder Chadha met Springsteen at the London Premier of his film The Promise in 2010 and discovered he had not only read but admired Greetings From Bury Park. Chadha says: "I quickly pitched him the film we wanted to make from the book on the red carpet and to our excitement Bruce nodded and said, 'Sounds good - talk to Jon'. We then spent several years developing a script we knew had to impress Springsteen and managers Jon Landau and Barbara Carr or there would be no film without his music and blessings."