Monsoon Wedding (2001)

Director:

Mira Nair

Writer:

Sabrina Dhawan (writer)

Release Date:

12 December 2001 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

The Rain is coming... and so is the Family.

Plot:

A stressed father, a bride-to-be with a secret, a smitten event planner, and relatives from around the world create much ado about the preparations for an arranged marriage in India.

Plot Keywords:

Wedding | Bride | India | Marriage | Arranged Marriage

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 6 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Naseeruddin Shah	...	Lalit Verma
Lillete Dubey	...	Pimmi Verma
Shefali Shetty	...	Ria Verma
Vijay Raaz	...	Parabatlal Kanhaiyalal 'P.K.' Dubey
Tillotama Shome	...	Alice
Vasundhara Das	...	Aditi Verma
Parvin Dabas	...	Hemant Rai
Kulbhushan Kharbanda	...	C.L. Chadha
Kamini Khanna	...	Shashi Chadha
Rajat Kapoor	...	Tej Puri
Neha Dubey	...	Ayesha Verma
Kemaya Kidwai	...	Aliya Verma
Ishaan Nair	...	Varun Verma
Randeep Hooda	...	Rahul Chadha
Roshan Seth	...	Mohan Rai

Also Known As:

Le mariage des moussons (France)
Monsoon wedding - Matrimonio indiano (Italy)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, including some sex related dialogue.

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

India | USA | France | Italy | Germany

Language:

English | Hindi | Punjabi | Urdu

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-7 | Iceland:L | Malaysia:18SX (uncut) | Malaysia:U (cut) | Hungary:14 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (Ontario - 2007) | India:A | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:Livre | France:U | Germany:o.Al. | Italy:T | Peru:14 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

New Delhi, Delhi, India

Company:

IFC Productions

Trivia:

The movie won the Golden Lion, the highest prize at the Venice Film Festival 2001. Mira Nair was the second Indian (after Satyajit Ray for Aparajito (1956)).

Goofs:

Continuity: When the maid is picking the glasses off the ground, she also picks up an orange flower and puts it behind her ear which subsequently disappears and reappears between shots.

Quotes:

Lalit Verma: Tej, you would like a cigar?
Tej Puri: Thanks, I've given up.
Lalit Verma: America makes everyone give up smoking.

Movie Connections:

Featured in 2006 Independent Spirit Awards (2006) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo

Exactly and approximately superb!

In Delhi, the wealthy father of the bride (Lalit, played by N. Shah) prepares an elaborate wedding. We meet his extended family, arriving from as far as America for the wedding, beginning with a formal engagement party 4 days before. Several subplots are followed: Additi, the bride, has chosen an arranged marriage instead of waiting for her married lover to leave his wife. Ria, her cousin, has never married and is being pestered by all concerned. We learn that Ria's father, Lalit's big brother, has passed away and so Lalit is her father-figure as well. Dubey, the wedding organizer, becomes smitten with Alice, Lalit's maid. As the days pass, family joys and family secrets are revealed.

I cannot praise this movie enough. First of all, kudos to N. Shah for a sensitive, complex portrayal that never, for a moment, feels like acting. Without hand-held camera pretensions, Monsoon Wedding nonetheless feels more like meeting a family at a big affair than watching a movie. It is real and intimate, yet magical. All the performances are good; Rajat Kapoor as an uncle with a secret is particularly powerful, and bears a striking resemblance to a younger Donald Sutherland.

We see Indian society as India sees it. My coworker, Sreeman, tells me that everyone attends neighborhood weddings; that an average wedding has 800–900 guests, and his had 1200. Traditionalism matters, but modernity matters as well. At one point, Lalit and Dubey argue over the wedding tent; should it be white, the modern (Western) way, or should it be colorful? Lalit demands color and Dubey orders "the old kind." The struggle between modern and traditional ways is one of the primary undercurrents of the film, embodied by Additi's choice, in fact, we meet her married lover as the host of a TV talk show discussing traditional versus modern ways.

Another undercurrent is finding love, impediments to love, and choices about love. Additi, Dubey, Ria, and another cousin, Rahul, all have barriers to overcome before they have a chance at happiness.

But the main theme is family, and this huge, chaotic family is a wonder to behold. You can't always tell who's related to whom, but you get the sense that they can't either, and coming from a large, extended family myself, I know that's how it is. Family is everything to Lalit, yet he communicates harshly with a son he doesn't understand, and calls nephew Rahul "idiot." Yet his love and devotion are clear, and he is the real hero of this film, coming through for everyone and stretching himself to the limit.