Bride and Prejudice, another GEM from Gurinder Chadha!! After Bend it Like Beckham, comes yet another superb piece of entertainment for the whole family!!
I know that not many people here on MS regard it as a great movie experience?and it didn?t fare as well in the Indian B.O?but that was expected, I mean if a fantastic movie like Bend It?didn?t strike gold in India, then what chance did Bride & Prejudice have? But, it remained at the no.1 spot in the U.K B.O! And the critics here are giving it rave reviews as well!
So, what?s this gem of a movie about you ask? What?s so special about it that has you jumping around Ena? Is it the GORJUS Martin Henderson? Or is it just cause it?s Indian, and is just a wonderful expression of what Indian culture is with loads of humour, great clothes, heart wrenching moments and so much more?
LOL, can I please pick All of the ABOVE? Seriously, one should definitely not miss this movie, I mean this movie will do wonders showcasing the Indian culture worldwide?I?m not concerned with Bollywood breaking into Hollywood?I?m more focused on the world knowing the Indian culture?and this movie far than exceeds expectations!
Ok??this is a story all about how Lalita?s life got flipped turned upside down, now all you gotta do is just sit right there whilst Lalita becomes the Princess of a Town called Bel-Air!? (tune it to ?Fresh Prince of Bel-Air).
Meet Lalita Bakshi, she?s the second eldest daughter of Mr and Mrs Bakshi. Her mother is all set to marry all of her four daughters to rich NRIs, and so, is obsessed with any NRI, whether he is any Tom, Dick, or Harry. The eldest daughter, Jaya, does meet a VERY rich guy from London, Balraj (who?s here with sister Kiran), and the two fall in love. Our Lalita also meets a guy, Balraj?s friend, William Darcy, he?s Caucasian by-the-way, and the two?s first meeting starts off on a sour note, but sparks DO fly!
Both Lalita and Will are stubborn people, and aren?t willing to compromise on their beliefs. Will is unable to adjust to the Indian environment, and Lalita takes most of his comments of ignorance very hard?so you get a lot of bickering, which is a delight to watch really! The double meanings, the mutterings! On a trip to Goa, Lalita meets a guy called Wickham and she feels that her search for love is over.
He seems like a guy perfect for Lalita?but Will sees RED every time he sees them together. Some more misunderstandings occur between Will and Lalita, and the two grow further apart until four FREE tickets to L.A land in their laps and Lalita bumps into Darcy again?. Will the sparks fly off again?
Well, why don?t you watch it and find out for yourself!
Martin Henderson as William Darcy is unbelievably HOT! He also acts SUPERBLY! I mean, whenever he came on screen, my heart just melted! And you also sympathise with his character, I mean first of all adjusting to the Indian environment, and then having his words twisted and manipulated by Lalita, facing his Mum?s resolute nature, coming to terms with his mistakes and then finally, convincing Lalita of his love...PHEW! But he pulls it off with aplomb.
I mean, it tags one?s heartstrings when you see his heartbreaking face whenever he either sees Lalita with Wickham, or when his mother ?pops? a surprise, or when he has to face his own decisions?sigh dreamy! The best scene was when he turns up at the last moment and is playing that Dhol!! Luvd that!
Ash as Lalita Bakshi, now I?m no big fan of hers?hehehe, but I do believe that she acted quite well. Moreover, she speaks English really well! Seriously, she has no accent whatsoever, and so, can pull off one-liners and all! Lalita?s determined nature is expressed wonderfully, I don?t believe anyone else could?ve pulled this role off, I?m being serious here?I also loved what she was wearing!! :D
You know I don?t get it, but I thought that Martin Henderson and Ash shared great chemistry?more so because of Martin?s ability to woo almost anyone?:D
Daniel Gillies as Wickham was Gorjus! Aupam Kher as Mr Bakshi had the BEST one-liners!!! Theyr a MUST hear! I mean, some people may miss them since he says it in the background, but they relate so well?and are just a crackup! He?s acted brilliantly in a role that he wasn?t unfamiliar too.
Nandira Babbar as Mrs Bakshi was a laugh RIOT! Far out! She was amazing!! Her attempts to show-off her knowledge...to show-off her status?to practice her power?to get her daughters married off?all HILARIOUS! One just cannot help but laugh?and I?m still laughing! :D Namrata Shirodkar as Jaya really blew me away with her fantastic performance! Naveen Andrews was also great as Balraj.
Nitin Ganatra as Kohli STOLE the show!! He was the ?ideal? suitor for Lalita. Kohli?s habits, behaviour and views correctly depicted those that go abroad and go a bit? bizarre.Sonali Kulkarni as Chandra was fine, so was Indira Varma as Kiran, as were Meghna and Peeya Rai Choudhry, the two younger sisters. Alexis Bledel (Rory from Gilmore Girls!!!) was fantastic as Will?s sister, as was Marsha Mason, Will?s mother.
The Music was also great, considering this was a different approach, English words with Bollywood style music?I reckon it suited the theme perfectly?they?re quite good really. I really like ?No Life, Without Wife!? and the ?Marriage Marriage? song was first like?hhhmm?but on second listen, it gets on!
Balle Balle was MAD! I luvd it! The picturisation was Brilliant! I also loved the ?Dola Dola? song!
The great thing I liked about this movie was that along with highlighting the prejudiced views of Westerners on the Indian culture?this movie also exposed OUR narrow-minded views on the Westerners. And this movie showed us that if we would just learn to compromise a little, half the problems would be solved.
Ok, now let?s get to the main point, the display of Indian culture was there to enjoy! There was so much to lap up, and I think this part of it was directed to the Western audience, as it is necessary to show them what India is all about. The film begins with a shot of the Golden Temple?couldn?t have asked for a better start myself! Then we are shown the true culture of Punjab?music, farm life, joyfulness, abundance, everything is there to lap up and enjoy! The Dhol gets you moving like no other! We were all literally dancing in our seats :D?the salwaar kameezes, the colour, the versatility?the FOOD! sigh Then, we were given a dash of the Gujarati culture with the Garba Night?and wow, wasn?t that something! I love playing Dandiya!! The music, the dance, the saris, the beat just set you off!
This movie is a MUST for anyone. The cinema was like packed! The only thing I didn?t like was the abrupt ending, but that?s about it. I LOVED the credits parts!
So come on?Let?s celebrate the fusion of two cultures?Let?s celebrate the vibrancy of life?Come On?Let?s Celebrate India!