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Sarfraz Manzoor
Sarfraz Manzoor met Bruce Springsteen at a film premiere in 2010
The writer of a film inspired by his teenage love of Bruce Springsteen is hoping to bring his idol to the town where it is set.
Blinded By The Light is based on Greetings from Bury Park, Sarfraz Manzoor’s memoir about his life in Luton in the 1980s.
He said he wanted The Boss to come to Luton so he could show him around.
Springsteen knew about Luton’s Arndale Centre and Vauxhall factory after reading the book, Manzoor said.
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Javed, the main character in the film, feels like Bruce is speaking directly to him through his music, producers said
At a chance meeting at a film premiere in 2010 Springsteen personally gave Manzoor and the film’s director, writer and producer, Gurinder Chadha, his backing to have the book made into a film.
Manzoor said although he was raised in Luton and Springsteen in New Jersey, his music spoke to him.
The film could “appeal to anyone who grew up in a town where they wanted to have bigger dreams”, he said.
Sarfraz Manzoor attended a special screening of Blinded By The Light in Luton
“It will be nice to put Luton on the map for different reasons than we usually hear about.
“People now know all about Luton in LA, and San Francisco and Phoenix,” he said.
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Entertainment One
Blinded By The Light is a “coming-of-age story” about a teenager who finds his own voice through the words and music of Bruce Springsteen
“I was really hoping I can get Bruce to come to Luton at some point, I want to show him my home town.
“He’s read the book, which is kind of crazy, so he knows all about The Arndale Centre and the Vauxhall car factory and about me growing up in this town.”
Manzoor was born in Pakistan, emigrated to Britain when he was about three years old and was brought up in Luton where his father worked on the production line at Vauxhall and his mother worked at home as a seamstress.
He attended Waulud Primary, Lea Manor High School and Luton Sixth Form College before leaving to study economics at Manchester University.
The book came out in 2007 and the film opens on 9 August.
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Bruce Springsteen “knows all about the Vauxhall car factory” according to Sarfraz Manzoor
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Entertainment One
The film is about 16-year-old Javed, who is given a cassette of Bruce Springsteen’s music by a school friend