Monsoon Wedding

 3.5/4

Starring: Naseeruddin Shah, Lilete Dubey, Vasundhara Das, Parvin Dabas, Shefali Shah, Vijay Raaz, Tillotama Shome

Rated R for Language, including Some Sex Related Dialogue

It's important to understand that "Monsoon Wedding" is not a traditional movie.  The film has no real "plot" in any conventional sense.  It's about the event itself, and the comings and goings of the people involved.  Director Mira Nair made the correct decision to film this as a sort of professional "home movie," if you will.  Only without the shaky cam and such.

More than just a wedding, the film is a tale of two Indias: rich and poor, old and new.  The film centers on the Verma family, who is clearly very wealthy.  But it also gives us a peek into the life of their event planner, who is not.  Nair also takes the trouble to contrast the Indian people who are entering into the age of cell phones and email while still holding firm to the traditions of their past.  The director doesn't dwell on this needlessly.  She just brings it to our attention and allows us time to reflect how it relates to our lives.

Aditi Verma (Das) is getting married.  She's entered into an arranged marriage with a man named Hemant Rai (Dabas).  But she's still hung up on a torrid affair with her boss, which threatens her marriage before it even happens, which is a shame since Hemant is nice and charming.  Her father Lalit (Shah) is stressing himself out by fussing over the wedding plans, taking his ire out on P.K. (Raaz), the event planner.  P.K. has his on crisis: he has become smitten with Alice (Shome), the Verma's maid, and isn't sure how to attract her attention.

Nair seems uninterested in turning these people into "characters" and what happens to them into a "plot."  Things happen, just as things happen with any wedding.  And the people involved have to respond to them the best they can.  What I value most from "Monsoon Wedding" is its thorough exploration of Indian culture.  Children are under immense pressure from familial duties, and those don't evaporate once they hit adulthood.  Family bonds are intensely strong, which complicates things for Lalit and his niece/surrogate daughter Ria (Shefali Shah) in ways I won't reveal.  This aspect of the film is something I found fascinating.  Not to mention helpful for the Indian wedding that I myself will be attending.

The acting is uniformly excellent, but, being an ensemble film of this nature, the best performances are the ones that seem to fit in the best.  But Naseeruddin Shah gives a strong performance as the strong-willed and stressed out Lalit.  He loves his family and his crisis of conscience truly hurts him.  Vasundhara Das is also good as a young woman who has some growing up to do in a very short amount of time.  And Parvin Dabas has genuine warmth and appeal.

Although the film deals with some dark material, Nair is skilled enough to make the film into a happy experience overall.  She understands and conveys that weddings are not so much about the couple but a celebration of life itself.  I think that's what she wanted to convey with this movie.  It's certainly what I took away from it.

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