DVD English Vinglish
Run time: 134 min
Rating: 7.9
Genres: Comedy | Drama | Family
Director: Gauri Shinde
Writers: Gauri Shinde
Stars: Sridevi, Adil Hussain, Mehdi Nebbou
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Storyline The story of a quiet, sweet tempered housewife who endures small slights from her well educated husband and daughter everyday because of her inability to speak and understand English. She is resourceful and open-minded but somehow these traits don’t get noticed by them. Then one day on a trip to visit her sister in Manhattan she decides to enroll in an English Learners class and meets a host of new people who teach her to value herself beyond the narrow perspective of her family. Written by Paroma |
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Plot Keywords: housewife, speech, wedding, watching tv, lie | |
Details: Country: India Release Date: 5 October 2012 (UK) |
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Box Office Opening Weekend: $745,414 (USA) (5 October 2012) Gross: $1,670,773 (USA) (19 October 2012) |
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Many will know I have been following Bollywood films over the last few years with keen interest, with one of the prime reasons being, why not? We have dedicated halls and screens which are always showing the latest the industry has to offer, very often having same day premieres, and I cannot fathom having to close this option off for the lack of language ability. English subtitles is a boon, and my only option to understand what's being said on screen. English is of course the plot element here in this film, written and directed by Gauri Shinde, who has made a film that's strong in heart, and powerful in performance.
I'm talking about Sridevi's comeback to cinema, having retired some 15 years ago to raise her kids. And this leave of absence surely helped her in her protagonist role here, but more on that later. For those unaware, like I was previously, Sridevi is arguably the best actress Indian Cinema has produced over the last few decades, and it is only today that I fully understood why. Her performance as Shashi, the traditional Indian housewife, is impeccable, and the littlest of nuances put into her role, reaped results in the manifold. As a line of dialogue described, her eyes are like coffee drops in a saucer of milk, and that in itself is an understatement.
Charisma is something that you have, or have not, and Sridevi's presence is something that arrests your attention immediately when she comes on screen. Carrying the entire movie, it's unbelievable to think that she's pushing 50 already, as her performance here will probably inspire many actresses of today's generation sit up and take note, to realize that they still have a long way to go to reach a fraction of her level. I'm sold, impressed, and very eager to catch up on her filmography to see what more she had to offer during the 80s and 90s when she was at the peak of her popularity then.
Her comeback in English Vinglish is a casting coup for its filmmakers, and let's not forget Shinde's story which was custom fit for her as well, playing the role of a mother, which probably made it quite an easy transition back to the industry. But it's an important role because one of the key takeaways from the narrative, is how we often take those who love us for granted, and as part of the process, inadvertently hurt them too. We may not realize it, or sometimes we do, but these hurt will likely be the worst possible. A callous word and a careless comment go a long way, and is difficult to, or sometimes cannot be taken back.
It's something many of us have been through and experienced, regardless which side of the equation one was on, where respect does not get accorded, and where words go out to make others feel small about themselves. In Shashi's case, this happens to be her lack of command in the English language, perceived to be an ability of social status, made quite unbearable when her children thinks it so, and when her husband (Adil Hussain) also gets in on a private joke with their daughter.
The film's story worked on many layers, and what I especially admired is how Sridevi becomes the spokesperson for lessons without being too overt about it, save for the ending speech that hammers in the emotion, and is sure to make your eyes well up. It deals with, on a macro level, how as humans we should be helpful and tolerant to those who don't speak our language or understand our culture, that one shouldn't be made to think one's superior just because, or make the other look small. And on the more micro level, the structure of the family and its importance. All these and more, told through a story about a woman finding her inner strength to stand out, stand up and be counted, building and reinforcing confidence that she's more than just a Laddoo machine.
But social factors aside, the more obvious ingredient that's put into the movie, is the Mind Your Language type scenes when Shashi enrolls herself into an English crash course to learn conversational English in four weeks. Instead of Mr Brown, there's Mr David (Cory Hibbs) the teacher (whose sexual orientation again highlights the differences in the human race and the need for tolerance and acceptance), and a motley crew of classmates from various parts of the world bonding together. From a woman who centered her life around family, building a network of friends became something of a lifeline of sorts, in keeping life interesting through the sharing of experiences, and of course, food.
English Vinglish has everything a typical Indian film contains, from comedy to romance – handled with such maturity – culture and language. What more, it has Sridevi's remarkable return, showing why she was, and still is, one of the iconic female actresses ever to grace the screens of Indian Cinema. A definite recommendation, and though formulaic at parts, is delivered with such slickness, that I'd shortlist it as one of the best this year.
The movie is about the women not from English background better say not well versed in English, but lives with the people of English background— classified as 'Modern'. The movie prescribes the way society lives. And how the women is categorized if she not proficient in English.
How this women learns English, the situations she overcomes, beats the challenges is the excitation plot and the movie is designed alike 'grope we are up taking the travel along'.
I share that Director handled the script very carefully, efficiently, and we can feel the Director's personal touch for this.
The movie has humor, commitment, and a lesson one should learn before provoking other's weakness, the art of the person's earning self-respect we call.
Sridevi is the forever topnotch actress, a tagged 'natural' actress, and she proves it once again. She is indeed the backbone of the film.
Hats-off to Sridevi(take a bow madam–you deserve an award for this film, the Director of the film, Gauri Shinde too, besides this is her first movie and she is going to set the levels on her future projects), cast n crew for giving such a good movie.
A must go film with your FnF 🙂
"If we don't love ourselves we use to attract towards new things but as soon as we began to love ourselves we feel confident and old things look prettier again." This is one dialogue from the movie's lead protagonist which teaches how one can come back to his normal life; English Vinglish is a sweet Laddu with almonds of a logical script, cashew nuts of nice music, raisins of love and pistachios of Hope. English Vinglish is not about just English classes, it's just a metaphor or platform to narrate a simple yet very effective story of self determination, self respect and love about family and love about ourselves.
English Vinglish is undoubtedly a movie about the Family, the children & their attitude towards their parents, the husband who does not see his wife skills and potential beyond a born Laddu Maker and yes, it's about a mother who lost her identity as a woman in the society after marriage being a house wife, as her world does not go beyond her family.
Shashi Godbole (Sridevi) is a simple middle class housewife living with her husband Satish (Adil Hussain) along with her daughter Sapna and a son named Sagar in Pune, India. She is an excellent cook searching for her own respect among children and husband due to poor understanding of English language. One day she got the call from her sister to visit New York to attend her daughter's wedding, but she was reluctant to go alone because of her poor English language, thou she finally agreed on her husband's persuasion. In New York, during her visit to a café she felt humiliated due to her understanding of English language which brought a reason for her to fight against the odds and make a place for herself. She left from there and suddenly saw an advertisement for four weeks English speaking classes and that's how she got the way to prove herself by learning a language which is global now and a synonym of 'Being Modern' in Indian societies called English, for Her VINGLISH.
Overall, English Vinglish is a memorable watch for the genuine script, superb performances, nice music and definitely the feel good factor it has. In Last scene, Shashi requests the air hostess a Hindi newspaper in English Language, and that's we called in Sridevi's MJ Style without getting 'Judgemental' YoOO.
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Superb! Fantastic! Definitely worth a Standing Ovation! This movie is a winner all the way. Right from the script to the characters, everything falls in place. Very difficult to find faults, in fact there is no need to find faults. This movie takes you on a journey of a typical Indian housewife who can hardly speak English. The treatment of the movie is such that you feel a connection with the movie. The best 'part' of the movie is, of course, Sridevi. Yes, The Sridevi. Her acting is so natural and realistic that you feel the emotions that she is going through in the movie. Sridevi has proved once again (after a break of 15 long years) that she is still the Queen of Bollywood, the so-called Female Amitabh Bachchan (as she was known as in the 80s & 90s). I saw this movie today in an overseas theater and not surprisingly, the theater was mostly full of mature audience, her fans. The movie and Sridevi's performance is worth not only many Filmfare Awards but most definitely an Oscar! Well Done Sridevi!