After Slumdog Millionaire Danny Boyle Introduces Another Patel

British filmmaker  Danny Boyle whose Slumdog Millionaire created a worldwide sensation and  made Dev Patel a  household name , is at it again.

 His  new  underproduction film entitled  Yesterday brings forward  another Patel in the lead.

He is 28 year old Himesh  Patel. In Boyle’s film Himesh plays a struggling musician who ‘owns’ all of  the Beatles’ songs after   they become  erased  from public mind.

Coincidentally  both of Danny Boyle’s Patels come from similar backgrounds.  Both Dev  and Himesh Patel were born and brought up in suburban  London.  Both started their film careers  on British television.

And yes, if Himesh Patel is  starring in  Yesterday  Dev’s voice  featured in  animation films  titled  Only Yesterday.

Would  Yesterday do for Himesh what Slumdog Millionaire did for Dev?

Chances are quite  dim.

 For one,  the music  of  the Beatles  does not have the same global resonance as  the slums  of Mumbai. More  importantly,  actors  of Indian origin are  not accepted in lead roles  by Western  audiences.Recently two of India’s best-known actors Irrfan and  Dhanush  played the lead in  the international  projects Puzzle and The  Extraordinary  Journey Of  The  Fakir,respectively  . Both were  resounding disasters.

 Anupam  Kher and  Priyanka Chopra who are doing well in the West are  cast in non-lead roles. Given the  limitations Himesh Patel may just have to be content with the attention  he gets  for Yesterday after  the  global audience  is done admiring the work of Danny Boyle and  the Beatles  in the  film.

Even  Dev Patel and Freida Pinto who made a worldwide impact in Slumdog Millionaire are struggling to  keep their heads above the water. Dev’s last two films The Wedding Guest  and  Hotel Mumbai barely got a release.As for Freida she was last seen  in  a brief role in  the  massive flop  Love Sonia.