In London, eccentric piano instructor Madame Sousatzka takes on a new prize protégé, Manek, a teenage Bengali immigrant who displays incredible talent. Manek forms a close bond with his teacher, but soon discovers that she expects her pupils to become disciplined in all areas of life, and not just behind the piano. As he struggles to meet the challenges, Manek must also deal with his mother, who vies with his teacher for his attention.

Shirley MacLaine
as Madame Yuvline Sousatzka

Navin Chowdhry
as Manek Sen

Shabana Azmi
as Sushila Sen

Peggy Ashcroft
as Lady Emily

Twiggy
as Jenny

Leigh Lawson
as Ronnie Blum

Geoffrey Bayldon
as Mr. Cordle

Lee Montague
as Vincent Pick

Greg Ellis
as Tarek

Robert Rietti
as Leo Milev
CinemaSerf
Luckily for “Manek” (Navin Chowdhry), he has a school teacher who knows a prodigy when she sees one, and so recommends to his recently single-mother “Sushila” (Shabana Azmi) that she send him to the eponymous piano teacher (Shirley MacLaine). She’s rather an eccentric woman but she instantly recogni...