Monsoon Wedding

Plot

Following up on her controversial erotic drama Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, Mira Nair directs this charming family drama about a very chaotic Indian wedding. Lalit Verma (Naseeruddin Shah) is a wealthy father who is trying to see that his daughter Aditi's wedding goes off without a hitch. Though familiar with Western ways, he has little patience with them and is dead set on seeing the nuptials done properly and traditionally. Disillusioned with her long time relationship with Vikram -- a man who is almost twice her age -- Aditi (Vasundhara Das) suddenly agrees to submit to an arranged marriage with Hemant, an engineer from Houston. Yet as the ceremony nears, she gets cold feet and returns to see her former lover -- even though it could spell disaster for everyone involved. Meanwhile, Aditi's comely 17-year-old cousin Ayesha is coming to terms with her blossoming sexuality and has her sights set on Rahul, another relative who is a college student in Australia. Then there is Rai -- also Aditi's cousin -- who has a shocking revelation to make. This film was screened at the 2001 Toronto and Venice Film Festivals. At Venice, Monsoon Wedding won the prestigious Golden Lion award. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Review

Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding is a warm embrace of a movie, a bright splash of romance and familial feeling. From the explosion of color and music that marks the opening credits, Nair builds a sense of anticipation for the whirlwind of romantic comedy and drama that marks her film. Winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, Monsoon Wedding shares its cultural richness and sweep with her previous films. As in Salaam Bombay and Mississippi Masala, life seems to seep in from the edges of the frame. Sabrina Dhawan's script carries the Nair trademarks -- strong supporting characters, and a good ear for how people speak and interact. The script was further developed through intensive rehearsals with the cast and crew. The story is deceptively simple, but touches on issues of class, child abuse, and cultural difference, all in seamless deference to the drama. Assisted by a large and talented group of actors, including personal friends and family (for example, the filmmaker's own nephew, Ishaan Nair, plays the bride's younger brother, Varun), Nair has created a film of intimate detail and universal appeal. One standout in the cast is Vijay Raaz, who plays the buffoonish, but, as it turns out, shyly romantic, marigold-munching Dubei. Raaz manages to make this dual personality completely credible. There's a regrettable patness to the film's coda. But for the most part, Monsoon Wedding honestly captures the spirit of modern Delhi -- the mix of languages (English, Hindi, and Punjabi), the blend of traditional culture and modern technology, the proximity of upper and lower classes, and the influence of Bollywood movies on everyday life. It's not just a touching, funny, multi-layered drama, it's an exuberant love poem to a city and a culture in transition. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Cast

• Naseeruddin Shah - Lalit Verma
• Lillete Dubey - Pimmi Verma
• Shefali Shetty - Ria Verma
• Vasundhara Das - Aditi Verma
• Parvin Dabas - Hemant Rai

Vijay Raaz - P. K. Dubei; Tilotama Shome - Alice; Rajat Kapoor - Tej Puri; Neha Dubey; Kulbhushan Kharbanda

Credit

Arjun Bhasin - Costume Designer, Mira Nair - Director, Allyson C. Johnson - Editor, Caroline Kaplan - Executive Producer, Jonathan Sehring - Executive Producer, Mychael Danna - Composer (Music Score), Stephanie Carroll - Production Designer, Declan Quinn - Cinematographer, Caroline Baron - Producer, Mira Nair - Producer, Sabrina Dhawan - Screenwriter

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