July 2, 2008
Lalita Bakshi: "I'm sure you think India is beneath you.
Will Darcy: If I really thought that, then why would I be thinking about buying this place?
Lalita Bakshi: You think THIS is India?!
Will Darcy: Well, don't you wanna see more investment, more jobs?<...( read more)/i>
Lalita Bakshi: Yes, but who does it really benefit? You want people to come to India without having to deal with Indians.
Will Darcy: Oh, that's good. Remind me to add that to a tourism brochure.
Lalita Bakshi: Isn't that what all tourists want, five star comfort with a bit of culture thrown in? Well, I don't want you turning India into a theme park. I though we got rid of imperialists like you!
Will Darcy: I'm not British, I'm American.
Lalita Bakshi: Exactly!"
Here's a neat/odd idea - update Jane Austen's enduring story about love and regret using as a medium the fascinating and often weird world of Bollywood. Keep the city sophisticates in London, move the country cousins to India and add a layer of imperialism via the United States. Ripe grounds for a ripping tale of resistance and arranged weddings in which very colourful characters dance and sing against a very colourful background. An instant cross-over hit. Director Gurinder Chadha, who was born in Kenya, raised in London, and is married to a Japanese-American, is clearly attracted to ethnic multi-tasking and understands the revelatory appeal of cross-cultural story-telling, which she achieved with distinction in the uber-entertaining and loved Bend It Like Beckham, and she does it again with Bride & Prejudice.
The basic storyline and skeletal structure are still the same as per Austen's novel, but now the clash of cultures provide an additional angle for the story to dwell upon, with brief commentary on the caste, and system of reputation, having Mr. and Mrs. Bakshi (Anupam Kher and Nadira Babbar), the proud parents of four beautiful daughters, on the prowl for eligible bachelors. The rather dominating Mrs. Bakshi, as usual, is the most preoccupied with finding suitable partners for each girl, starting with the eldest, Jaya (Namrata Shirodkar). News soon spreads about an eligible bachelor, Mr. Balraj (Naveen Andrews) arriving from London for a local wedding. Whilst Mrs. Bakshi rejoices at this wonderful opportunity, she faces stiff competition from a surprising number of fellow mothers with similar motives. Luckily Mr. Balraj ignores the others and becomes immediately smitten by Jaya.
The instant attractions continue when Mr. Balraj's good friend Will Darcy (Martin Henderson) who spots Jaya's sister Lalita (Aishwarya Rai). His good looks and charm initially attract Lalita, although one or two conversations later, she decides he's arrogant and snobbish. Fate keeps bringing the two together but their apparent pride and prejudice continue to pull them apart. During this process Lalita meets a couple of other suitors, including the conniving Mr. Wickham (Daniel Gillies) and a hilariously terrible Indian-American Mr. Kholi (Nitin Chandra Ganatra). It's selection time and Lalita faces increasing pressure to pick her groom.
If you haven't experienced Bollywood as of yet, this the ideal film start with, because it isn't exactly a Bollywood film - it's a Western comedy which incorporates elements from Bollywood. Therefore, elaborate song and dance routines will break out spontaneously, dialogue filled with clichés and dated jokes will abound and men and women will never kiss. Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding and Deepa Mehta's Bollywood Hollywood are two other films where East and West meet, making them good primers so as to ease your way into the Bollywood experience. Still, Chadha sticks largely to the Bollywood formula - at least as far as style goes. The costumes and sets both blaze with bright colours. With such a set design, it only adds to the fun feel of the film.
Had the script been a product solely of Hollywood, it would induce nothing but groans and the sounds of theatre seats smacking back into place as audience members walked out early. Take the character of Mr. Kholi, for instance. He actually quotes the old Budweiser "Wazzup?" commercials that are five years overused and acts all-American, like he's in India on vacation or something like that, and not visiting his homeland. Sure, he's supposed to be a nerdy poser type, but of all the unfunny lines that could have come from him, the best that they could come up with is "Wazzup?" However, there's a lot of Chadha's tongue pressed in her cheek. It's meant to induce groans.
Bride & Prejudice is very aware of itself as a cross-cultural film. And that perspective is exactly where its greatest strength lies. Like Monsoon Wedding and Bollywood Hollywood, it tackles the subject of converging cultures as old India, represented by Lalita's mother (hilariously played by Nadira Babbar) and old animal-drawn farm machines, and a new, emerging India, represented by the hustle and bustle of big business, cars and new technology. There is tremendous tension between the two and it's Lalita's generation who are stuck in the middle of it.
Observations like pandering toward all things west as good, and dreams of instant emigration often get shot down, in no part due to rebuttal from Lalita, who exudes all things pro-India, and come to think about it, it's quite true as a universal theme if you discount the country in question, addressing the attitudes of migrants who forget their roots. Chadha is also just a little critical of Western influences on India, which is still a very young nation having gained independence just 60 years ago.
Chadha has managed to create another extremely enjoyable and light-hearted film that, while still clichéed, is many steps above the hundreds and hundreds of romantic comedies that flood theatres around the world every year. She deserves credit for bringing all the elements of this romantic melodrama/comedy/musical together in such an energetic and appealing way. The musical numbers are a rousing mix of glitz and glamour. Several vigorously choreographed large group numbers are nothing short of spectacular. One of them even takes place on a Californian beach with a Gospel choir in blue robes and a serenading group of surfers provide backup music to the festivities. Bride & Prejudice is a cross-cultural gem filled with many magical moments.
Former Miss World, Bollywood Queen Aishwarya Rai - who was listed by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world - does a great job as the female lead in her first starring-role in English. Despite the weaknesses in the personality of her character, Aishwarya manages to make Lalita very likable. She breathes life into the character and some of her facial expressions (particularly during emotional scenes) are like picturesque portraits. New Zealand actor Martin Henderson is adequate. He does a decent job, as does Naveen "Sayid" Andrews, with a refreshingly different role. However, everyone else becomes kind of irrelevant when compared to Rai, who is potentially the most attractive woman ever born in the history of life on Earth. There are no words appropriate for describing her beauty. You feel like you're watching some sort of otherworldly creature... and what a smile!
All in all, still a decent romantic comedy with a plus for its Indian/Bollywood elements and its dare, though I'm not entirely sure if Austen purists would like to see that literary classic take a Bollywood turn. But those who enjoy Bollywood films or have always held a certain fascination for India will - guaranteed - have a very hard time not enjoying themselves. Bride & Prejudice, being part Jane Austen, part Bollywood and part Western comedy, probably won't be for everyone. Not probably, it won't be for everyone. It is however, a lot of fun if you let it, don't take it too seriously and accept, beforehand, that it'll be a predictable, resolution-long-known, but also extremely amusing and colourful film starring the most beautiful woman in the world. Like Chadha's Beckham, it's cotton-candy fluffy. It might not be the healthiest thing for you, but it makes you smile incessantly and feel oh-so-good while you eat it.
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