VANILLA SUNDAE
LIGHT HEARTED SOCIAL DRAMA

Vanilla Sundae is set in the incredible microcosm of Indian culture that is Southall in West London. 

Here  Jasveer “Jazz” Kohli (aka. Vanilla Sundae); a fun-loving outgoing 19 year-old British Asian teenager lives under the watchful eye of her authoritarian Sikh father, Gurdial and elder brother Hardeep.  Secretly though she dreams of becoming a pop star and sneaks away to a local rehearsal studio in the evenings to practice in secret with her friends Jyoti and Mukesh, a song writer.

The film will focus almost totally on Southall’s Indian community and culture, bringing it’s richness and character to life.  In fact there are only one or two non-Asian roles, it’s appeal though stretches across the youth market – young people facing challenges and achieving their dreams being a universal theme.

Music features heavily within the film with pop promo like sections incorporating dance and giving insight into Jazz’s undiscovered potential.

A few months away, an international music competition for Industry professionals, “Bollywood Dreams” is this year to be held in London.  Jazz and Jyoti’s dreams in this respect are limited to just being lucky enough to get a ticket; even to enter the competition you have to be nominated by music business organisations such as record labels, radio stations or TV channels.

One evening though at the studios by chance Jazz happens to see well known music star Aruna Black storm out of one of the rooms, in fact she’s been rehearsing there in secret as Sunrise Radio’s entry for the competition under the guidance of Sunrise DJ Raj.   Innocent of this though she gets the people there to record a demo track for her as a favour.  They’re astounded by how good she is but she dashes off trying to get back before her 9pm curfew.
 
Meanwhile Gurdial is trying to pursue his political career helping the local MP’s election campaign, away from the clothing manufacturer sweat shop that he owns.  He has no idea that Jazz does anything but study secretarial skills at the local college, he’s outraged then when he catches Jazz at an extremely fashionable election launch party no only working as a humble waitress but also in a very revealing outfit which she’s been forced to  wear by a scheming college friend.

Now, although her free time is even tighter life is going to take a turn for the better –by chance she meets Raj who’s been trying to find her to replace Aruna as Sunrise’s entry for the Bollywood Dreams competition!  There’s lots of hard work ahead and lots of ups and downs as the competition approaches, including the onset of an arranged marriage to the MP’s nephew and not the least by Gurdial’s discovery that his workaholic lifestyle is killing in the same way that it killed his father.

This is nothing though compared to the night of the massive Bollywood Dreams competition when by chance he finds Raj kissing Jazz at the Sunrise studios where he’s gone for a political broadcast.  He has a heart attack and now Jazz has to make the heart wrenching decision to accompany her father to the hospital or go to competition.  The film accelerates to a massive conclusion at the Bollywood Dreams mega event but can Jazz stand the strain?  And can Gurdial finally realise that he has a daughter and not just a social weapon.  The climax is both emotionally uplifting,  tearful and a triumph of happiness.