In a country in which one’s sexuality determines the color
of one’s face, Sweety Chaudhary (Sonam Kapoor) musters up the spirit to defy
her family-imposed restrictions and gets her face colored black; only to an
inspiring end. ‘All’s well that ends well’, after all! Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To
Aisa Laga (EL) is a dramatic comedy that is colored with the various shades of
contemporariness- sexual orientation, alternative professionalism, gender equality
and inter-religiosity to name a few.
Sweety, the girl with a frivolous name is supposed to be what
her family expects of her: sweet, submissive and straight. Her sweetness
embitters her own existence and isolates her socially until help knocks at her
door in the form of a smitten Sahil Mirza (Rajkummar Rao). Sahil’s entry in
Sweety’s life or the other way round propels the plot and the characters
forward in a direction that ends well for both of them distinctly as well as
collectively. There are other sub-plots that serve various functions: play a
role in transforming the characters, provide a social commentary and entertain
humorously.
The characterization of the movie is extremely impressive.
The characters are alluring in themselves and the movie is made dynamic as they
collaborate and conflict with one another due to their unique ideologies.
Someone believes in bribery; someone believes that men should not cook; someone
believes that a Hindu should not marry a Muslim; most of them believe that
homosexuality is abnormal.
Balbir Choudhary (Anil Kapoor) deserves applause for his
acting and persona. He is a considerably progressive man but this is tested
when confronted with his daughter’s homosexuality. He says: “I didn’t expect
this from you.” It traumatizes him but he transforms because of his own will
only. In the present era in which a father’s role in the upbringing and life of
the children is almost negligible, his persona showcases an important aspiration
of the Indian society; the deeply-rooted desire of having an active and
understanding father.
Interestingly, the title of the movie: Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To
Aisa Laga (What I felt when I saw that
girl) is multi-purposeful. Initially, it seems befitting for the
love-struck Sahil; then, there is an ‘Ahaa!’ moment in which it seems befitting
for Sweety’s love-story; eventually, it turns out to be a play within a play.
It is noteworthy that the title has been extracted from a very popular
Bollywood hindi song and had always been associated with heterosexuality;
however, with this movie its implications in the Indian society are likely to
change.
The scenes have inexpensive settings. Some of the most
serious scenes have been rendered comical through dialogues. For instance, when
Sweety confesses her love for another woman to the drunk Sahil, he guffaws. The
background music is timely and lively. The narration is driven ahead with the
help of flashbacks and a bit of suspense.
Not only does the movie portray the plight and misery of the
oppressed but also offer solutions for them in the form of answers to crucial questions
that torment the people today such as: How should homosexuality be
destigmatized? (They need to be accepted as ‘normal’ first by the family; in
fact, a person who does the contrary should be rightly criminalized.); What
should a writer write about to become successful? (In this regard, the movie
re-ignites the role of a writer to empathize with the oppressed and use his or
her craft to alleviate them; and that would make him successful.); What should
be a priority: the individual or what the society opinionates about her? (The
former.)
The only flaw in the movie is the abject artlessness of the
dialogues and the plot! However, overall, it is a masterpiece. It is also a
notable contribution to art as well as the society as a whole. The most
valuable take-away from it is that it is acceptable and even desirable to have
a black-colored face!
-Kriti Malhotra
