Punjabi film Dastaar generated £1.2m for region’s economy

IMPACT: The cast of Dastaar, with potter Gabriel Nicholas, third from left, whose workshop in Barton was used in the film

By Simon Bristow, Co-Editor

A major feature film shot in Hull and the surrounding area injected an estimated £1.2m into the region’s economy.

Dastaar was the first Punjabi film to be shot on location in the city.

A 100-strong crew of actors and production staff spent nearly two months in the city at the end of last year filming the action movie.

Scheduled for worldwide release in cinemas in July, the Hindi language film is also expected to be shown at a special screening in Hull.

The film stars Tarsem Jassar, a huge acting and music star in the Punjab region of India, and is set in the 1980s, telling a gritty action story of courage, faith and overcoming adversity.

ON LOCATION: Filming in Hull

The Punjabi producers worked with a team from Hull-based Northern Films during the shoot.

Northern Films managing director Andrew Fenton said the extended nine-week filming period helped contribute around £1.2m to the local economy.

As well as using local hotel accommodation and employing extras for some scenes, the producers also hired a range of local services.

Among the latter was the Tapasya Indian restaurant on Hull Marina which prepared 100 meals three times a day during the shoot.

Using so-called low-impact filming, much of the location work required only minimal street closures. As a result, the disruption caused by filming large-scale historical drama was avoided despite the film’s storyline being set in the 1980s.

LOW IMPACT: The filming caused little disruption

Mr Fenton said: “We hope this marks the beginning of more low-impact film projects coming to the region to further boost the local economy.

“We sincerely appreciate the support from local businesses and residents who assisted in the making of this film.

“We would also like to extend our gratitude to everyone for their patience regarding payment processing. With over 700 payments to manage, it took longer than originally anticipated to clear all the transactions.”

A short behind-the-scenes video of the making of Dastaar is set to be released by Northern Films next month.

Meanwhile, the company’s own debut feature film The Last Trip is scheduled to be released in cinemas later this year after an earlier planned release date was pushed back. A comedy, it tells the story of five retired Hull trawlermen going to back to sea for one final adventure.

Mr Fenton said: “The delay has mainly been down to getting all the music clearance rights completed but everything is now in place at long last.

“The focus now is on the film’s final release and we will be updating with more information on that very soon.”