Aston Hall stars as backdrop in Indian pop video

Aston Hall - the backdrop for Sarbjit Cheema's latest music video

An historic Birmingham museum has gained international stardom as the backdrop to a hit music video.

Indian pop superstar Sarbjit Cheema filmed his latest video at Aston Hall just before Christmas.

The video subsequently shot straight to the top of the Punjabi charts and was downloaded from YouTube more than 10,000 times in the first week.

It was shot and directed by Stewart Addison and Jazz Virk from Birmingham based production company Film Division Productions.

Old English

The production team contacted the council's Film Birmingham unit and said they were looking for a special location that had an old fashioned English feel to it.

Aston Hall was re-opened in 2009 after a £12.75m restoration

Cllr Martin Mullaney, Cabinet Member for Leisure, Sport and Culture said: "They filmed at Aston Hall a couple of days before Christmas and the end results are quite stunning. I know the producers were very pleased with the outcome and so are we."

Jazz Virk who directed the video is an award winning, internationally acclaimed music video director and has worked with artists such as Nelly Furtado, Jazzy B, Ghetto Concept and many more, over the last 10 years.

Jazz said: "Sarbjit Cheema is massive. He's not only a pop star, he's done films too and has a huge worldwide following - not just in India but anywhere with a big Sikh community.

"We're all delighted with the final outcome - it looks fantastic and the staff could not have been more helpful."

Stunning history

Aston Hall and Park was re-opened in 2009 following a £12.75m refurbishment and restoration project.

Home to the Holte family, Aston Hall is one of Birmingham's most treasured buildings. It boasts interiors from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, including the magnificent Long Gallery.

It's display rooms illustrate the part Aston Hall and its residents played in key moments in history.

Birmingham City Council is hoping Aston Hall's recent starring role will lead to more requests to film at the 376 year old museum.