Movie Column
Best Bollywood Films of recent times – Part 3
By Dinesh Kamath
Veere di Wedding (2018) directed by
Shashanka Ghosh proved to be another one of the best films of recent times.
Veere Di Wedding (transl. Brother's
wedding) is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language female buddy comedy film, directed by
Shashanka Ghosh and co-produced by Rhea Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor and Nikhil Dwivedi.
It stars Kareena Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania in
lead roles, as four friends attending a wedding.
Veere Di Wedding released
theatrically on 1 June 2018 and received mixed reviews from critics, with
praise towards the chemistry and performances of the cast. Made on a budget of
Rs. 42 crore (US$5.8 million), the film earned over Rs. 138 crore (US$19 million)
worldwide to emerge as one of the highest-grossing Hindi films featuring a
female lead. It received three Nominations at 64th Filmfare Awards including
Best Supporting Actress for Talsania and Bhaskar.
Veere Di Wedding is a high spirited
and upbeat coming of age story revolving around the lives of four childhood
friends Kalindi (Kareena Kapoor), Avni (Sonam kapoor), Meera (ShikhaTalsania)
& Sakshi (Swara Bhaskar). Ten years later when these four best friends
reunite, they don't realize how much life has changed from what they expected.
The film is set against the backdrop of Delhi, where the girls are born and
brought up, their trials and tribulations in modern day world, regarding family
acceptance, marriage & societal perceptions.
The movie narrates a story of
friendship. The film revolves around a tightly knit group of four friends as
they face the trials of family, modern-day romance and a big Indian wedding.
Triggering that journey is Kalindi (Kapoor-Khan), one of the group’s staunchest
individualists, who on a whim decides to tie the knot with her long-term
boyfriend Rishab (Sumeet Vyas). Shocked at the news, the remaining girls; the
hot-shot lawyer Avni (Sonam Kapoor), the perennially angsty Sakshi (Swara
Bhaskar) and family woman Meera (Shikha Talsania) converge to support Kalindi
as she prepares to run the gauntlet of cultural and religious customs that are
all part of the wedding ceremony.
It is a topical tale. What follows
next is the film juxtaposing scenes of the splendour and glamour that goes
behind a high-profile ceremony with the brooding questions and doubts the girls
feel when discussing notions of relationships and family.
This is where the film is most
intriguing. In a refreshing break from standard Bollywood fare, where marriage
is often dealt with superficially at best, Veere di Wedding makes an effort to
ask the tough questions: is having a family a sacrifice? What do we gain and
lose by inviting someone else into our lives? And is the traditional marriage
effective for today’s well-connected generation?
Reception
Box office
Veere Di Wedding had net earnings
of Rs 10.70 crore on its first day in India, setting the record for the highest
opening day collection for a Hindi film with female protagonist(s).
Critical response
Several critics noted the film’s
similarities to the television series Sex and the City. Comparisons were also
drawn with the comedy Bridesmaids (2011), Bachelorette (2012) and the Indian
television miniseries The Trip (2016). On the review aggregator website Rotten
Tomatoes, Veere Di Wedding has an approval score of 33% on the basis of 8
reviews with an average rating of 3.8 out of 10.
India
Rachit Gupta of The Times of India
gave the film a 3.5 (out of 5) rating, calling it a “brave effort.” He praised
the concept of the film, the performances and the chemistry between the leads,
but criticized the pace and felt that the story lacked depth. A reviewer for
Bollywood Hungama giving a similar rating and review to the film commented that
“Veere Di Wedding rests on a great idea and interesting characters. But it
doesn’t translate into a fully entertaining fare. It’s the direction that plays
spoilsport.” Sweta Kaushal of Hindustan Times gave the film 2/5 stars and said
it “tries to subvert the male dominant stereotype but these moments are so few
and far between that you almost miss the point.”
Devesh Sharma of Filmfare rated it
3.5 (out of 5 stars) and opined that the film’s greatest strength was the
chemistry between the leads: “that beneath all the cuss words and the sex jokes
you get a whiff of genuine friendship.” Conversely, Chaya Unnakrishnan (writing
for Daily News and Analysis) felt that the chemistry between the leads seemed
forced at times. She rated the film 3 (out of 5) stars and insisted that it
should not be watched as one that dealt with women empowerment. Raja Sen
(writing for NDTV), in a 3.5/5 rating, noted that the film “lands several blows
to the patriarchy while never giving up its masala entertainer roots.”
Saibal Chatterjee, also from NDTV,
however, was critical of the screenplay and the predictability of the plot, and
wrote that it was watchable “because of the lively performances from the four
actresses.” He gave the film 2 stars (out of 5). Rajeev Masand, writing for
CNN-News18, criticized the film along the same lines, and added that it was
“largely contrived and forgettable." On the other hand, Shubhra Gupta of
The Indian Express rated the film 3 (out of 5 stars) and in a positive review,
remarked that it “squeezes past its creaky tropes and partial squelchiness by
some smart casting choices, and perky performances.”
Rohit Bhatnagar of Deccan Chronicle
rated the film 2.5 (out of 5) stars and thought that it was “an easy, breezy,
one-time watch.”[40] Meanwhile, Kunal Guha of Mumbai Mirror concluded that “while
this one works as a breezy film on girl bonding, it gets a bit tedious while
taking a stab at patriarchy” and stated “it almost seems like old wine in a new
bottle.” He gave the film 3 stars (out of 5). Writing for Firstpost, Anna M.M.
Vetticad described Veere Di Wedding as “an unapologetic commentary on the lives
of women”; Pradeep Menon (also of Firstpost) in a less favorable review largely
credited Kapoor Khan for “effortlessly anchor[ing] this flawed but fun film.”
Baradwaj Rangan, in a mixed review, called Veere Di Wedding “a plasticky but
passable entertainer whose existence may not be the worst thing in the world.”
Overseas
Saeed Saeed of The National awarded
the film 4 stars out of 5 and described it as “a fun, feisty and slightly
ribald comedy but with a tender heart lurking not far beneath.” Manjusha
Radhakrishnan of Gulf News rated the film 3 (out of 5) stars. She was
appreciative of Kapoor Khan’s performance and remarked that “Veere Di Wedding
will go down as an engaging film that doesn’t hurt the eye.” Shilpa
Jamkhandikar of Reuters negatively stated “In terms of humor, “Veere Di
Wedding” works well, but it stutters when it comes to the emotional conflicts,
which feel unreal and contrived.”
A particular scene in which
Bhasker's character masturbates using a sex toy received a polarized response
on social media. However, it was critically praised for its realistic portrayal
of female sexuality.
Awards and nominations
The film was nominated for Mirchi Music Awards Song of The Year -
"Tareefan", Upcoming Music Composer of The Year Qaran - "Tareefan" and
Listeners' Choice Song of the Year "Tareefan".
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