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"Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful." ~ John Maeda.
This Sunday while surfing the TV channels, luckily I came across this movie while it was being aired on &Pictures. I didn't need a second invitation (although I must have watched the movie at least a dozen times if not more but it continues to delight me), the movie is very close to my heart. Perhaps there can't be a better example of a movie from the recent times than "English Vinglish" that is as simple a story and yet as touchy and charming as it is. It may not be a path-breaking one but it surely is a genuinely sweet movie that revels in its simplicity and warmth. I had huge expectations from this movie right from the time when its first trailer was released and the movie didn't disappoint me at all.
The only thing that I missed dearly while watching was mummy's presence. I wish she was there with me... I could have hugged her while I was crying/smiling through certain moments in the movie.
"English Vinglish" is a fabulous, heartwarming story of a woman coming into her own, depicting the transformation of Shashi Godbole, a meek, put-upon housewife low on confidence into a confident, self-loving persona conquering her insecurities and fears.
WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THE MOVIE:
(a) Sridevi's acting:
I loved every thing about English Vinglish - be the story or the direction or the acting performances, but, make no mistake, this is Sridevi's show all the way. After 15 long years (having taken a sabbatical from the Indian film industry after "Judaai" in 1997), she was making her comeback with "English Vinglish" and Wow! what a powerful performance she has given! Sridevi has always been a natural actress but in English Vinglish, the way she has portrayed the vulnerability of an unassuming homemaker who is made to feel inadequate because of her poor English speaking skills, is simply outstanding. God bless her soul.
She made acting look so simple, effortlessly slipping into the character of Shashi - a dedicated housewife, a dotting mother and a budding entrepreneur in her own right -- a gifted, home-based sweet maker whose prepared laddoos earn her plaudits from clients spread across the city. And yet, just because of her lack of English skills, she is treated with scorn by her husband and daughter.
Let's face it, even after 68 years of achieving freedom from the Britishers, some of us Indians continue to suffer from a colonial hangover, which includes English-speaking elitism. Such people believe that if a person isn’t fluent in English, then his/her “non-linguistic” achievements aren’t relevant.
Shashi's world revolves around her husband and their daughter and son, they are the three most important people in her life. So their casually masked unkind and belittling remarks surely hurt her self-esteem. But the real achievement of "English Vinglish" is in the way how Sridevi never allows her character to look like a victim, rather she flawlessly portrays a woman seeking only respect and dignity from her family.
(b) The Story and Gauri Shinde's direction
The debutant director Gauri Shinde must be commended for having given us such a beautiful, touchy story, bereft of any melodrama but more so for the way the character "Shashi" and the moments have been crafted by her.
Some of the scenes were so powerful that I was moved to tears - be it when Shashi's husband and daughter guffawed on her dialectic pronunciation "jhaaz" for jazz (one could see the hurt in her eyes) or the scene where Shashi confidently delivers a speech in English at her niece’s wedding.
MY OPINION:
‘English Vinglish’ may not be a groundbreaking movie literally but it surely was a life-changing experience, in that it touched upon a subject what most contemporary mainstream film makers hadn't ever attempted -- the often neglected section in Indian families - the 'housewife'. The movie in fact holds up a mirror to how we treat our mothers. There is this particular scene where Shashi's classmate in the English learning course, the french man (who happens to be a cook himself) upon tasting her laddoos, tells her that she is an artist, to which Shashi replies, "When a man cooks, it’s an art. But when a woman cooks, it’s considered to be her duty." That's so relatable. I could identify with the character Shashi, I saw my mummy in her.
Sublime, sensitive, thoroughly absorbing and eye-opening. Well done, Gauri Shinde and Sridevi.
