Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan
We went to watch the latest offering of the indefatigable Ayushman Khurana – "Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan". Khurana's choice of movies shows that he is very confident of his craft and is able to choose good content. He lives in an era where film makers are ready to experiment with themes and unusual casting. Such kind of movie would have been unthinkable in the past.
This gay story is handled in a very mature way. We are shown Khurana's Kartik and newcomer Jitendra's Aman to be a same sex pair right at the beginning. There are no pretenses, no excuses, no back stories. The director, who is also the script writer, has shown remarkable restraint in refraining from going down the lurid way. There are no offensive scenes or below the belt jokes. What one gets is a pure, unadulterated, middle class north Indian show. All the characters are very believable and relatable. Their surprise bordering on disgust, when they realise the sexual preferences, is captured in a beautiful way. Giriraj Rao and Neena Gupta impress do an encore after Badhai Ho. They play parents to the slightly submissive Aman. Kartik – the more aggressive and expressive of the two has not been shown to have any family to fall back on.
To Khurana's credit, equal weight has been given to the newcomer Jitendra. The star does not shadow the newbie. My constant grudge with Hindi movies is about the songs. Here too, they only serve as speed breakers. They could have done with only the end credits Yaar bina chain kahan re....
Gayatri found this movie to be very nuanced and felt that one has to be very attentive to grasp the hidden and suggested meanings in many dialogues. The apple of our eyes was not sure whether Vidula and I would enjoy this movie as she knows our views on homosexuality. I must admit that my views have changed after watching this movie. In a very important scene, Aman's uncle asks him, "when did you decide to be gay?" To this Aman replies with a question, "when did you decide to be straight?" Our predilections are hard coded at birth. It must be very confusing for a young girl or a boy to accept their same sex orientation. They need to be reassured that it is okay to be this way. Now after the supreme court having decriminalised same sex relationships more people will come out in the open. This will be a good thing for society.
Earlier I was disgusted by such "deviant and abhorrent" activities. I distinctly remember my disgust and later rage when I saw two boys indulge in a sexual act in the Shah building premises. Their behaviour was of course inexcusable. I somehow felt unsafe after watching that act and promptly spoke to baba about having a safety door. Fear has no logic it seems.
While watching the movie a stray thought entered my mind... how would all of us react if anyone of our future generation is having such a preference or if anyone of the present or older generation actually had same sex leanings but chose to keep mum.... thoughts are well... thoughts.... hey come and go.
This gay story is handled in a very mature way. We are shown Khurana's Kartik and newcomer Jitendra's Aman to be a same sex pair right at the beginning. There are no pretenses, no excuses, no back stories. The director, who is also the script writer, has shown remarkable restraint in refraining from going down the lurid way. There are no offensive scenes or below the belt jokes. What one gets is a pure, unadulterated, middle class north Indian show. All the characters are very believable and relatable. Their surprise bordering on disgust, when they realise the sexual preferences, is captured in a beautiful way. Giriraj Rao and Neena Gupta impress do an encore after Badhai Ho. They play parents to the slightly submissive Aman. Kartik – the more aggressive and expressive of the two has not been shown to have any family to fall back on.
To Khurana's credit, equal weight has been given to the newcomer Jitendra. The star does not shadow the newbie. My constant grudge with Hindi movies is about the songs. Here too, they only serve as speed breakers. They could have done with only the end credits Yaar bina chain kahan re....
Gayatri found this movie to be very nuanced and felt that one has to be very attentive to grasp the hidden and suggested meanings in many dialogues. The apple of our eyes was not sure whether Vidula and I would enjoy this movie as she knows our views on homosexuality. I must admit that my views have changed after watching this movie. In a very important scene, Aman's uncle asks him, "when did you decide to be gay?" To this Aman replies with a question, "when did you decide to be straight?" Our predilections are hard coded at birth. It must be very confusing for a young girl or a boy to accept their same sex orientation. They need to be reassured that it is okay to be this way. Now after the supreme court having decriminalised same sex relationships more people will come out in the open. This will be a good thing for society.
Earlier I was disgusted by such "deviant and abhorrent" activities. I distinctly remember my disgust and later rage when I saw two boys indulge in a sexual act in the Shah building premises. Their behaviour was of course inexcusable. I somehow felt unsafe after watching that act and promptly spoke to baba about having a safety door. Fear has no logic it seems.
While watching the movie a stray thought entered my mind... how would all of us react if anyone of our future generation is having such a preference or if anyone of the present or older generation actually had same sex leanings but chose to keep mum.... thoughts are well... thoughts.... hey come and go.
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