It's a very refreshing take on relationships that form over time.
Warning- spoilers
A schoolgirl exploring romantic relationships while in the middle of the hormone laden teenage years suffers a setback when she gets pregnant while out on a Valentine's Day date. A family friend, Bharose, comes to her rescue - helping her fake a letter from school, taking her to a medical clinic , even suffering the advice given by the doctor who assumes he's the impregnator. He does all this without any expectation of payback as a platonic friend. While some men take this behavior by a man to showcase 'doormat ' qualities- to me personally, it shows heroism and friendship and displaying a sense of chivalry towards a helpless girl that's tough to find these days. Moving on, the girl does show romantic interest in Bharose but is mainly interested in the men her age who can provide her the kind of comforts she's used to.
This is the part that the director has not focused at all on and has left to the imagination of the audience.
Bharose is shown to understand and accept that due to their class difference , he wouldn't be able to woo her and he tries to move on by saying yes to a traditional arranged marriage proposal. This again shows a very mature person who doesn't throw acid at the girl he can't have, doesn't bother her with unwanted sexual harassment or stalking, and just tries to make a clean exit out of her life- like I said, very refreshing to see in an Indian movie!!
The girl finally sees him for all he that is- a mature, genuinely respectable, good man who's unlike any other she's met. Despite his illiteracy, lack of modern manners or even money- she realizes that the intangible qualities that he has makes him the man of her dreams.
She tries to get closer to him- not quite knowing how to, she tries to help him with his business venture and to use that as an excuse to spend time with him.
This is another thing I loved about the movie- it's not a 'boy sees pretty girl, chases after her relentlessly - almost stalling her- till she gives in' kind of a movie but a 'boy helps a girl he knows without looking for payback, starts liking her, moves back and away when he feels that liking is not reciprocated followed by the girl chasing the guy' movie - very unusual for Indian movies.
She takes matters in to her own hands when she realizes that she will be married off to a man she doesn't know, Bharose will get married and be lost to her forever- hatching a plan that involves him eloping with her without even understanding it.
There are moments where both are shown to uncertain of the other's feeling towards themselves and that cute, shy interaction makes very entertaining bits to watch (almost comparable to the famous Darcy-Lizzy interactions in the BBC series starring Colin Firth' Pride and Prejudice').
Must watch for anymore looking for romantic stuff and also someone who believes that healthy relationships need to be shown more in Indian cinema.
Review of Running Shaadi
