Deepak keeps it in the family with new movie venture

In the 1980s, he became a well-known figure across the West Midlands for his Sanjeet Video hire shop, specialising in Indian films. After that, he achieved fame as an award-winning Bollywood film producer.

Now his son Deepak is following in his late father's footsteps by reviving the family movie business with a 21st century twist.

Deepak, 43, has relaunched Sangeet Video in tribute to his father, who died in May, aged 70, from the coronavirus. But instead of hiring out videos or making movies, the new Sangeet Video business specialises in converting old cine, camcorder and VHS films onto modern DVD and USB formats.

He can even repair and retrieve footage from old and damaged tapes, something that came in useful this week after a customer suffered a break-in.

"Somebody broke into his premises, and threw the security tape in the canal," he says. "He gave me a call and asked me if there was anything we could do with the tape, and I've managed to repair it and we can now see the people who broke in."

And he says just as his father's shop in Raby Street, Wolverhampton, used to attract customers from across the West Midlands, he says the new-look Sangeet Video is also attracting interest from around the UK and Ireland.

"It's always very emotive when you do the cine film, because that is often from the 1950s or 60s," he says.

Deepak, 43, says when he was looking through his father's belongings, he found several brand new, unopened VHS recorders.

Surinder was born in the Punjab in 1949, but moved to Wolverhampton at the age of six, and was fascinated from films at a very early age.

He produced the first Punjabi movie filmed in England, which was shot in various parts of Wolverhampton. The film, titled Yaari Jatt Di, won the coveted Silver Jubilee Award.

Deepak, who lives in the Parkfield area of Wolverhampton, says the new business will be online only, through his website Sangeetvideo.co.uk