Bollywood goes West

Raza Jaffrey, who plays the role of Akaash, right, and Preeva Kalidas, who plays Priya, perform in Bombay Dreams

LONDON, England (CNN) -- The much anticipated Bollywood musical, Bombay Dreams, has premiered in London to a standing ovation.

Andrew Lloyd-Webber's lastest musical offering, which opened Wednesday, is a love story set against the backdrop of Bombay's famous film industry.

Lloyd-Webber teamed up with Shekhar Kapur, director of the Oscar-nominated film Elizabeth, to devise the production, and compose.

AR Rahman, the creative talent behind more than 50 Bollywood soundtracks, wrote the musical score. The script was written by cmedian Meera Syal.

The musical tells the story of Priya, the wealthy daughter of a famous Bollywood producer Madam Kumar, who dreams of making her first movie, and Akaash, a young slum dweller who aspires to be a Bollywood star.

The Times of India says Bombay Dreams features the classic Bollywood 'masala' of romance, comedy, tragedy, melodrama, songs and dance and outstanding music from virtuoso Rahman.

"The music of Bombay Dreams is almost like an extension of eight years of my career," Rahman told the paper.

The musical's composer AR Rahman (L), with producers Shekhar Kapur and Andrew Lloyd-Webber

"The only special thing is it's in English, so it's been a challenge trying to cross the language barrier and reach a mainstream audience too. It will be a really eye-opener for the whole of the West towards Indian music," he said.

Lloyd-Webber, who composed the hit musicals Cats and Phantom of the Opera, said he was inspired after seeing an Indian film which featured a song and dance sequence on the roof of a speeding train.

The music for that film, Dil Se (From the Heart) was composed by Rahman.

Bollywood stars including actress Juhi Chawla, actor Naseeruddin Shah and film producer Subhash Gai attended the world premier in London.

With a budget of $6.7 million and three years in the making, Lloyd-Webber is hoping that the show will follow the pattern set by Cats, which holds the record for the longest-running musical ever staged in either the West End or New York's Broadway.