In today's evolving society, it's difficult for teenagers to not stick to their gender roles. What motivates them to do so is the importance of following their dreams. Bend it Like Beckham, directed by Gurinder Chadha in (2002), and Billy Elliot, directed by Stephen Daldry (2000), are movies that share common themes and ideas. Both directors illustrate the idea of gender roles by using a younger sibling and demonstrating their struggles to comply with their parents' expectations and the constant clashes with their elder siblings about how to act in their obstinate cultures. The directors equally display how the protagonists have to break cultural barriers in order to follow their dreams. .
Both films' cultural settings helps the directors present the message in their films. In Bend it Like Beckham, Jesse, the younger of two girls, is from a Sikh family living in Hounslow, West London. Her dream is to play soccer professionally. But in the Sikh culture, the women are restricted to cooking and house chores. In Billy Elliot, Billy is living in northeastern England. The movie takes place in the time of a coal miner's strike. Over time, he develops a passion for ballet but it is often hard for him because of the controversy that is associated with it. His culture consists of men being strong individuals because most of them are working in the coal mine. As the movie progresses, we see the riots at the picket line and how violent they can turn out to be. Each of these settings gives a better context to the films because both characters are going against the norms set out by their respective culture. Both of these main characters have dreams but unfortunately, the cultural constraints make it difficult for them to pursue them. Their parents are unsupportive of their choices and harsh punishments are handed to them. For example, Jessy lies to her parents about being on the soccer team and when they finally find out, she's grounded and banned from all soccer activities.
