Bollywood films shot in Bradford (West Yorkshire in UK).
Akshay Kumar’s film Gold shot in Bradford
The Odsal Stadium in Bradford doubled as the old Wembley stadium for filming of Akshay Kumar’s film ‘Gold’.
- Odsal Stadium in Bradford becomes old Wembley stadium for filming of Akshay Kumar’s film ‘Gold’.
- The film ‘Gold’ is being shot at locations across Yorkshire
- Doncaster Racecourse had Nazi emblems set up outside the main building
- York City’s Bootham Crescent ground doubled up as Berlin’s Olympic Stadium
The stadium was used for filming of Bollywood film ‘Gold’, based on Indian Olympic hockey team’s achievement which won India’s first gold medal as an independent nation at the 1948 Games, in London (the final was held at Wembley). Hundreds of extras were brought in to make up the crowd cheering on the teams.
The film also takes you back to the Olympics of 1936 in Berlin, for which locations around Bradford, including around Lister Mill and Little Germany were used to film Nazi Germany scenes, with swastikas and generals.
“We found a lot of what we needed in Bradford. It has been a perfect venue for us. The locations were ideal and the buildings of Little Germany lent themselves perfectly to the scenes we were setting,” executive producer of Gold.
About Bradford
Bradford, located in the North of England (West Yorkshire), is home to a huge South Asian diaspora (you will find both Indians and Pakistanis in big numbers).
As expected, thousands of fans turned up to have a glimpse of Ranveer Singh (a Bollywood superstar in the making).
Although Bradford was one of the first places in the UK to have regular screenings of Hindi language films, not many Bollywood stars have visited Bradford in recent times.
In fact, Ranveer Singh is the first major Bollywood star to Bradford since it hosted the Indian Film Awards (IFA) ceremony in 2007.
Bollywood Movies Filmed in Bradford
Bollywood star Ranveer Singh was in Bradford to promote his film, Befikre with a free staged event in City Park.
Producer Vashu Bhagnani spent a day in Bradford visiting the various locations (street scenes, markets, mosques) before giving the go-ahead for filming ‘Welcome to Karachi’ in Bradford.
‘Welcome to Karachi’, starring Arshad Warsi and Jackky Bhagnani, was shot in Bradford (it doubled up for Karachi). Filming was done at places like Little Germany, Bombay Stores, City Hall and Drummonds Mill.
Filming was also done at quarry sites in North Yorkshire, and some of the region’s famous peaks, which appear in the film as mountains in Afghanistan.
The streets of Little Germany (in Bradford) also doubled as 1920s London for a Bollywood horror film.
Bollywood Carmen
Performed in Bradford’s City Park, this stunning live performance combines the vibrancy of Bollywood with Bizet’s classic opera Carmen. Bollywood actor Abhay Deol headed the star cast.
Watch: Bollywood hits Bradford with Bollywood Carmen starring Abhay Deol
Years back, Bradford used to be one of the go-to places in England for screenings for the South Asian immigrant communities. In the past, veteran actors like Waheeda Rahman, Vaijayanti Mala and Helen have visited Bradford.
Bradford was the first city to be named City of Film by Unesco (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) in 2009.
History of Little Germany
There’s a place called ‘Little Germany’ in Bradford, and here’s the history behind it.
When Bradford was booming in the mid-nineteenth century (trading center of the world’s wool textile industry ), the city attracted several wealthy merchants, many from Germany, who were keen to invest in Bradford.
Keen to impress the German clients, Bradford built several imposing offices, showrooms and warehouses,
using finest quality Yorkshire stone, with ornate architectural features and decorative masonry.
That locality became ‘Little Germany’, an urban village of outstanding architectural and historical significance.
Watch: Little Germany in Bradford, West Yorkshire UK
Useful Links
- Want to film in Bradford? The Bradford film office can help you with advice on locations, getting permissions and facilities for funded productions.
- Bradford Big Screen: Share your Film, Photography and Creativity.
Bradford Big Screen sits at the heart of the vibrant City Park and sees on average 500,000 people passing through every month. If you have a film, photographs or other content to share, get in touch. - You can study Film and Media Studies at the University of Bradford.
