Yasmin -- Pictureville Cinema, Bradford

Many people in Keighley know about Ken Glenaan's film, shot on location in the town, but few will get to see it as things stand.

A crime, because modern-day cinema needs this sort of film as an antidote to the saccharine nonsense of big-budget Hollywood.

Getting only its second screening in the UK at Bradford's Bite the Mango following its premiere at the Edinburgh Festival, this brave, funny, depressing and ultimately truthful take on life for young, muslim women should be seen by as many people as possible.

It follows Yasmin -- played by Bend It Like Beckham's Archie Panjabi -- living her life between two worlds.

On one hand she leads a modern life, drives a sports car, holds down a good job and flirts with both a western lifestyle and her white workmate.

On the other, she is trapped in a loveless arranged marriage with an abusive man she calls "the import".

But after September 11, Yasmin's outlook is changed both by the racism she encounters at work and the arrest of her husband on wafer-thin terrorism charges. We also see her father and brother brutalised by police leading the latter down the road to fundamentalism and departure to fight in Palestine.

The film has encountered accusations of stereotyping the Asian community.

But both Glenaan -- who spent months living in the community running workshops -- and Shahid Ahmed (Yasmin's husband) passionately defended the picture it paints as true to life: an assessment echoed by the majority of Asians in the crowd during the question and answer session at the end.

It's true there are a lot of ideas chucked into the broth. But the film gives us the ingredients of a decaying northern backdrop, unemployment, racial tension and family guilt and leaves the audience to decide what to make from it.

By the end of the film Yasmin has swapped her tight clothes for her hijab once more -- a process reversed from opening scenes -- and is finally finding balance in her life.

Panjabi grew into her role more and more as the film went on and veteran actor Renu Setna was class personified -- as always -- as the father. Syed Ahmed, unearthed at the workshops looked to have been acting all his days and Shahid Ahmed played the part of the immigrant husband deftly.

Despite the enthusiastic response from the audience, Glenaan revealed there is little chance of Yasmin breaking into mainstream cinemas or even private theatres. Money talks and backers seem unsure of how much a film like this might make, especially with Ken Loach's Ae Fond Kiss already in some multiplexes.

But, I for one hope it does come to Keighley and gives the people of the town chance to re-assess how we all interact with one another in our daily lives.

Stuart Roberts