To be honest, I did not like the trailer for the movie. Not for the reasons you might think! I don’t mind the cuss words or controversial scenes because I understand that it is an A rated movie. Obviously, this is not a movie that you can watch with your family unless you discuss everything under the sun with them. The trailer did not appeal to me because I found it forced and trying too hard to be westernised. Trying to ape Hollywood. You know, “Sex and the City”, “Desperate Housewives” and the likes. Besides, I was not sure of the calibre of the cast and crew and was almost sure they’d make a royal mess of a copy. If it was a copy in the first place that is!
Yet, I quite liked the story-plot of four childhood friends and their life journey. So, I did not want to dismiss the movie as yet. The mixed reviews got me curious. Whether it was the viewers or the critics, they either loved the movie or were disappointed. I decided to check the movie out myself.
I was pleasantly surprised that I was so wrong about my initial judgment. Never ever judge a book by its cover or movie by its trailer!
While “Veere Di Wedding” might be inspired by Hollywood, it is completely desi at heart. For all its brouhaha, “Veere Di Wedding” is neither a feminist movie nor is it male bashing. There are actually some wonderfully etched male characters. Be it Kalindi’s fiancé Rishabh Malhotra played by Sumeet Vyas, her uncle Cookie played by Vivek Mushran, Sakshi’s (Swara Bhasker) father played by Babla Kochhar, Meera’s (Shikha Talsania) husband John Stinson played by Edward Sonnenblick. There are men who are real jerks as there are men who are secure, supportive and respectful of their women in “Veere Di Wedding”.
For those who are looking at “Veere Di Wedding” as some path-breaking feminist movie, let me break your bubble and tell you that it’s not. “Veere Di Wedding” is an entertainer with four goofballs as its female protagonists who live life on their own terms and take random potshots at society at large. The hilarious moments come into the picture when their own mistakes or decisions come to bite their behind and how they escape unscathed with the support of each other.
The movie is a fictional account of four girlfriends who are fiercely independent and classic rule-breakers. To set the tone right at the start, the girlfriends are seen playing a prank in their school. This rebellious streak tinged with naughtiness continues well into their adulthood. They want to break all the rules and make as many mistakes as they can. They want to script their own life. Coming from rich, privileged backgrounds means they can afford to make very costly mistakes.
There are two ways of looking at “Veere Di Wedding”. Before I explain any further, I totally enjoyed the movie. I laughed hard at and with the characters.
If you look at the movie as simply a comedy movie without questioning the ethics, values and upbringing of the characters, you will enjoy it. If you don’t take the movie seriously, you will not find it offensive when it mocks tradition and its accompanying rituals. You should not apply too much logic when you watch this movie. If you can do that, you will have a blast.
Humour is a tricky genre to pull off. What is funny to some is derogatory to others. “Veere Di Wedding” is a light-hearted humorous movie with not-so-perfect protagonists. In fact, the four protagonists are really a mess. They are perennially in a state of confusion with each fighting their own personal battle.
Coming to the Veeres, Kareena Kapoor plays Kalindi Puri with utmost finesse and restraint. Not to forget mentioning that she looks like a dream. Following her mother’s death, she escapes to Australia and from marriage. As fate would have it, she meets Rishabh Malhotra played by Sumeet Vyas who proposes marriage after their long courtship. It is a true comedy of errors as Kalindi makes the shift from her broken family to Rishabh’s “Hum Saath Saath Hain” style parivaar. She finds that the joke is on her and her escapist streak returns. What follows forms the climax of the movie.
Then there’s the divorce lawyer, Avni Sharma played by Sonam Kapoor. She makes her entrance with the ‘I believe in equality and fairness’ stance as she fights for and wins a divorce case on behalf of a man. But not without taunting his wife that she doesn’t deserve a ‘phutti kaudi’ of the alimony. Very Judge Judy, if you ask me! She has a highly successful career but is unfortunate as far as love is concerned. Much to the worry of her mother played by Neena Gupta whose time is forever spent in scouting suitable alliances for her darling daughter. I personally felt that Sonam Kapoor’s character was the weakest of them all. For a lawyer, she is incredibly confused as far as her relationships go. You’d expect her to be highly shrewd and practical. But again, considering that this is a comedy movie, one shouldn’t apply too much logic or look for rationale. Also, her character’s saving grace lies in those fleeting moments when she stands up for the underdogs such as encouraging Swara Bhasker to take the plunge and file for divorce from her emotionally manipulative husband. Sonam Kapoor plays her part decently well. She is spirited, effortlessly goofy and funny.
Swara Bhasker’s character Sakshi Soni is my personal favourite in the movie. She got the toughest card in the pack to deal with and she pulls it off. With a risky character to portray and some path-breaking scenes, Swara Bhasker stands distinctly apart. Sakshi Soni is battling marital separation, depression and wagging tongues. She finds her therapy in the bottle and is shown tipsy in most parts of the movie. Her childhood female buddies come to her rescue and help her find nirvana. She finds closure when her ever supportive parents join her hands in pursuing the divorce. Even the much-hyped masturbation scene has deeper significance (no pun intended) to the sub-plot. I don’t want to add any spoilers here and will leave it at that. Swara Bhasker plays the troubled yet strong woman well.
The last but not the least Veere is Meera Sood played superlatively by Shikha Talsania. She has an estranged relationship with her uncle who raised her following her decision to marry a foreigner. Meera is happily married and blessed with a 2-year-old son. As far as performances go by, Shikha Talsania aces amongst them all. She made me laugh the loudest in the movie. I loved the scenes in particular when she ganged up with Swara Bhasker. Together, they were a riot and a treat to watch.
The Veere’s in a nutshell – Kareena’s hot. Sonam’s cute. Swara’s gutsy and Shikha’s Mother Dairy (I’m still so tickled with her nickname).
There will be innumerable moments in the movie when you think – what are the Veeres wearing? The costumes are OTT, bizarre but they go perfectly well with the movie considering the fact that it is a comedy. The costumes alone can be a talking point of discussion and laughter.
Now, if you look at the movie from a critique’s POV, you will find flaws. “Veere Di Wedding” is no “Dil Chahta Hai” or “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara” which were all-guys movies with a universal appeal. It doesn’t fall in that league at all. It falls severely short there. The male protagonists in those movies have well-sketched characters. That depth, substance and transformation is lacking in the female protagonists in “Veere Di Wedding”. As mentioned earlier, if you look at it as a comedy movie without trying to find logic or perfection, it works. But again, when compared to the mentioned male buddy movies, Veere Di Wedding lacks overall consistency in flow. While the movie starts with a bang and is paced well throughout the movie, the climax hangs like the loose ends of a thread. It ought to have been handled with the same tempo and gusto.
“Veere Di Wedding” is whacky, non-pretentious and completely crazy. It was refreshing for me to see four female lead protagonists shed their inhibitions, let their hair down and share their vulnerabilities for a change. Definitely one of the good movies that I have watched in 2018 and one of the good Hindi comedy movies in a long while. It’s not for everybody and is suited for a certain age group and people with certain kind of sensibilities.
Before I conclude, “Veere Di Wedding” is way better than most of the 100-200 plus crore cliché Bollywood hit movies in the recent past. I have no doubts that “Veere Di Wedding” will be a huge commercial blockbuster hit. It certainly deserves to be so!
Author’s Note: I hope you enjoyed this movie review. Have you seen the movie? What are your thoughts on ‘Veere Di Wedding’? I would love to read your thoughts in the comments. If you like the blog, please share with your friends. Please do follow my page to know when I post next. Thank you!
Also, check out my previous article: I Used To Sit On My Dad Just Like Aamir’s Daughter, From Childhood Till After My Marriage