Very authentic, lots of fun, and also very touching - loved it!
I grew up in New Delhi, where this film is set, so perhaps I had an easier time identifying with the situations and issues in this film than the average viewer - and I throughly enjoyed it.
Mira Nair has really managed to capture the mix of confusion, chaos and sheer fun that is typical of all Indian weddings (which is often the only time most members of an extended family manage to actually meet up), along with the 'ostentation' and sheer joie-de-vivre that typifies the specifically Punjabi variant of the Indian wedding (cue the singing and dancing, which was grrreat), without shying away from tackling some serious issues that often lie under the surface in many families, and the complex dynamics of the interaction between members of an extended family. One great thing about this film for me was that it captured how a lot of people feel about the extended family - not always pleasant or easy to deal with, with lots of internal tensions, often messy, but in the end something one would be loath to not have around in the background, and a source of strength.
What differentiated this film from a lot of movies from India that focus on weddings was its sheer authenticity. Every character seemed real. The language was perfect - this is how people like us speak when we're in India (or with others from India or Pakistan) - a mixture of Hindi, English and any other language we happen to have in common, usually in the space of a single sentence. This is probably not easy for people who haven't grown up in multi-lingual societies to appreciate, but this is exactly what it is like and for us it's as natural as speaking in English all the time is for your average American. It does seem to be beyond the abilites of many people who've reviewed the film on this site to understand though, but I suspect this is sheer laziness. I watched it with Americans, Colombians and Mexicans, and everyone loved it. As for the accents: well, that's how Punjabis speak English, so too bad if you find it tough to understand. I found the accents in Gone with the Wind incomprehensible, too. :)I'm really glad Mira Nair didn't compromise with the complexities of spoken 'Hinglish' to make the film more comprehensible for an international audience, as that would have robbed the film of one of its principal charms. Contrast this with the atrocious dialogue in Fire', which rang false for every moment of its running time.
On to specifics: I thought Naseeruddin Shah, Shefali Shetty and Vijay Raaz were simply superb, and also liked Lilette Dubey's turn as a typical upper-middle-class Punjabi housewife a lot. Naseer is such a wonderful actor, and it was a pleasure to see him tackle a role that was good enough for him, after a long time. He handled comedy, frustration, tenderness, confusion, pride, ... all with typical ease. Ditto for Shefali, a well-known TV star in India, in her first big-screen role (as far as I know). Hope to see more of her! Tillottama Shome as Alice looked lovely and acted really convincingly too, and Vijay Raaz's paan-chewing (or should that be marigold-scoffing?) Bihari tent-man was both hilarious in his exasperating-ness, and touching in his eventual genuineness.
Another high point was the soundtrack, with its mixture of Hindi filmi hits (old and new), Punjabi bhangra, and ghazals and for once a traditional Punjabi wedding song (unlike the syrupy versions Hindi films are replete with).
Also, I liked the fact that no attempt was made in the outdoor shots to make Delhi, which I love but which is in many parts a chaotic mess :)) look prettier or more sanitised than it is. The city looked totally real, which is hardly surprising given that everything was shot on location and as a resident of the city, I could actually work out where the Vermas lived, went shopping, and so on. This is the most accurate depiction of life as I know it that I have seen on-screen, ever. If you're an upper-middle-class Punjabi, this is how you live, eat , speak, marry ....
So overall, very authentic, very real, very amusing, very satisfying. Only quibbles are perhaps that I couldn't work out why the hell Aditi was seeing that sleaze Vikram (unless he was just amazing in bed or something) and I did find Vikram's talk show a bit much and a slightly unsubtle way of introducing the 'culture-clash' motif.
Mira Nair has really managed to capture the mix of confusion, chaos and sheer fun that is typical of all Indian weddings (which is often the only time most members of an extended family manage to actually meet up), along with the 'ostentation' and sheer joie-de-vivre that typifies the specifically Punjabi variant of the Indian wedding (cue the singing and dancing, which was grrreat), without shying away from tackling some serious issues that often lie under the surface in many families, and the complex dynamics of the interaction between members of an extended family. One great thing about this film for me was that it captured how a lot of people feel about the extended family - not always pleasant or easy to deal with, with lots of internal tensions, often messy, but in the end something one would be loath to not have around in the background, and a source of strength.
What differentiated this film from a lot of movies from India that focus on weddings was its sheer authenticity. Every character seemed real. The language was perfect - this is how people like us speak when we're in India (or with others from India or Pakistan) - a mixture of Hindi, English and any other language we happen to have in common, usually in the space of a single sentence. This is probably not easy for people who haven't grown up in multi-lingual societies to appreciate, but this is exactly what it is like and for us it's as natural as speaking in English all the time is for your average American. It does seem to be beyond the abilites of many people who've reviewed the film on this site to understand though, but I suspect this is sheer laziness. I watched it with Americans, Colombians and Mexicans, and everyone loved it. As for the accents: well, that's how Punjabis speak English, so too bad if you find it tough to understand. I found the accents in Gone with the Wind incomprehensible, too. :)I'm really glad Mira Nair didn't compromise with the complexities of spoken 'Hinglish' to make the film more comprehensible for an international audience, as that would have robbed the film of one of its principal charms. Contrast this with the atrocious dialogue in Fire', which rang false for every moment of its running time.
On to specifics: I thought Naseeruddin Shah, Shefali Shetty and Vijay Raaz were simply superb, and also liked Lilette Dubey's turn as a typical upper-middle-class Punjabi housewife a lot. Naseer is such a wonderful actor, and it was a pleasure to see him tackle a role that was good enough for him, after a long time. He handled comedy, frustration, tenderness, confusion, pride, ... all with typical ease. Ditto for Shefali, a well-known TV star in India, in her first big-screen role (as far as I know). Hope to see more of her! Tillottama Shome as Alice looked lovely and acted really convincingly too, and Vijay Raaz's paan-chewing (or should that be marigold-scoffing?) Bihari tent-man was both hilarious in his exasperating-ness, and touching in his eventual genuineness.
Another high point was the soundtrack, with its mixture of Hindi filmi hits (old and new), Punjabi bhangra, and ghazals and for once a traditional Punjabi wedding song (unlike the syrupy versions Hindi films are replete with).
Also, I liked the fact that no attempt was made in the outdoor shots to make Delhi, which I love but which is in many parts a chaotic mess :)) look prettier or more sanitised than it is. The city looked totally real, which is hardly surprising given that everything was shot on location and as a resident of the city, I could actually work out where the Vermas lived, went shopping, and so on. This is the most accurate depiction of life as I know it that I have seen on-screen, ever. If you're an upper-middle-class Punjabi, this is how you live, eat , speak, marry ....
So overall, very authentic, very real, very amusing, very satisfying. Only quibbles are perhaps that I couldn't work out why the hell Aditi was seeing that sleaze Vikram (unless he was just amazing in bed or something) and I did find Vikram's talk show a bit much and a slightly unsubtle way of introducing the 'culture-clash' motif.
- sd268
- Apr 15, 2002