There have been very few British comedies about Jewishness — and even fewer that actually made anyone laugh. But The Infidel, a comedy written by David Baddiel on a Jewish (and Muslim) theme, does just that, by poking fun at both religions.
The mother of Muslim minicab driver Mahmud dies suddenly. As he goes through her papers, he realises that he has been adopted as a baby… from a Jewish family.
Mahmud, played with tremendous zeal by Omid Djalili, becomes the original self-hating Jew. But however much he is appalled by the discovery he also wants to find out more about his identity and his family — a quest that leads him into an unlikely friendship with Jewish black-cab driver, Lenny (Richard Schiff).
Meanwhile, Mahmud’s travails multiply as his son, Rashid, prepares to become engaged to Uzma, whose stepfather, Arshad, is a hardline Muslim cleric.
