In 2005, a record number of Bollywood films were released in the UK – 74 Indian films compared to 61 home grown productions.

British based Indian directors are now taking heed of the market for Bollywood film productions in the UK, expanding traditional genres to accommodate for the enthusiastic British Bolly fans.

Gurinder Chadha, who directed the acclaimed Bend it Like Beckham in 2002, had further success with Bride and Prejudice in 2005 - an Indian retake on Jane Austen’s classic illustration of social affairs. Actress Aishwarya Rai, who played the role of the famed heroine, is one of Bollywood's biggest stars.

Parminder Nagra is arguably our most successful British-Indian actress after performances in Bend It Like Beckham, Love in Little India and Maya the Indian Princess.

2001's Monsoon Wedding, was another UK hit, featuring Naseeruddin Shah and Lillette Dubey.

Bollywood in the UK: key facts

The UK has the largest audience for Indian cinema outside India (Neilsen EDI)

Bollywood films grossed £12.4m in the UK in 2005, up from £8.1m in 2003

This was 1.4 per cent of the gross UK box office in 2005, a niche certainly, but higher than the total box office of all European releases combined (UK Film Council)

Almost 16 per cent of all films released in the UK last year were Indian films. This was higher than the number of British films, approximately 13 percent

By November last year, 69 Bollywood films had been released in the UK. Of these, nine have made the UK Top 10

Hindi was the most common foreign language in terms of the number of releases in the UK in 2005

Bollywood produced 11 of the 20 most successful foreign-language films released in the UK in 2005

UK Asians are big cinema consumers, with 42 per cent going once a month or more

The International Indian Film Academy Awards, aka the Bollywood Oscars, will be held in Yorkshire in June 2007. More than 15,000 attended last year's awards in Amsterdam, watched by 480m

In 2007 Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna (Never Say Goodbye), a story about married Indian couples living in Manhatten, grossed more than £2m - the UK's most popular Bollywood release ever

What is your favourite Bollywood film made in Britain?

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