By Firdaus Ali
In Toronto
Sweet, sensitive films, based on stories from rural India but packed with punchy social messaging, have managed to grab the attention of TIFF cine goers this year.
Included in this line-up is Lost Ladies (Laapataa Ladies), a delightful unpretentious film about two brides in India, who accidentally get swapped and through this not-so-merry exchange, find their voice and distinct space in a male-dominated landscape.
The film gives global audiences a panoramic view of rural India and how women can have their own agency and be strong in their resolve to rise above patriarchy norms, without battle cries and declaring a war on men.
Kiran Rao who made her directorial debut with Dhobi Ghat (Tiff 2010), makes a great comeback with this quirky, light-hearted film, which is definitely every feminist’s dream. And, joining her as producers in the optimistic, uplifting cinematic experience are producers Aamir Khan (Aamir Khan Productions) and Jyoti Deshpande (Jio Studios).
The film screened under TIFF 2023 Centrepiece Programme (formerly known as Contemporary World Cinema), connected with audiences instantly, for its reformist theme without being preachy or conforming in any way,
Dressed in a dark blue ensemble and a wide smile, Rao was all smiles at the world premiere of her film and said she was delighted to come back to TIFF with her second directorial debut. Calling TIFF a, “wonderful audience-driven festival,” she felt honoured for the warmth and love she received from attendees.
Built on a cotemporary storyline and laced with tongue-in-cheek humour, The Aamir Khan-Kiran Rao cinematic reunion results in sheer magic, taking you back to woman power in films like Lagaan and Dor. Set in 2001 in rural India, the film revolves around the lives of two brides played brilliantly by Pratibha Ranta and Nitanshi Goel.
Based on Two Brides, an award-winning story by Biplab Goswami, Lost Ladies’ screenplay and dialogues are written by Sneha Desai with additional dialogues by Divyanidhi Sharma.
Goswami’s was one of the winning scripts at the Cinestaan India Storytellers Contest, where Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, who is also one of the producers of the film, was on the jury. The script was subsequently worked on by Sneha Desai and Divyanidhi Sharma, keeping Goswami’s vision intact.
Lost Ladies delightfully explores comic peaks and tragic valleys as one of the newly wed bride promptly lands up in the other’s marital home. As the story unfolds, it manages to gently unpeel themes of patriarchy and sexism. Of the experience, Rao said, “It was fun and a great learning experience to have these two brides, who besides getting swapped, really find their true selves in the process. As a director, it was exciting to see how the characters of the two brides evolved through the process of the film,” she added.
The two girls were brides from rural India have different mental landscapes, which maps out their futures, and is not necessarily the cliched endings that Indian audiences are used to.
The film, which explores key themes in a lighter vein, does not demonize its characters but places issues where they belong, adding a bit of a comic relief and optimism, which keeps the film both alive and quirky.
Among many things, the film gnaws at patriarchy without creating a war. It shows that women who believe in themselves, can bring about change in their families and their communities, without having to tear the social fabric of the spaces that they occupy.
The film opens with new brides Jaya (Pratibha Ranta) and Phool (Nitanshi Goel), veiled in their crimson, filigreed marital saris, are accidentally swapped when Phool’s timid groom Deepak (Sparsh Shrivastava) mistakenly escorts Jaya out of their overnight train.
Now, self-possessed and secretive Jaya temporarily enters Deepak’s joint family, while docile and fragile Phool finds herself abandoned at a remote railway station.
Soon, Phool is befriended by a railway urchin and his accomplice and sheltered by the coarse but matronly tea kiosk owner Manju Mai (Chhaya Kadam). Jaya, on the other hand, experiences doting sisterhood, innocent flirtation, and an opportunity to flex her intellect in Deepak’s raucous household.
Meanwhile, in a gradually unfurling investigation led by goofy and power-tripping local police officer Shyam Manohar (Ravi Kishan), the grooms cluelessly search for their respective wives. Kishan, a corrupt cop has a change of heart at the end of the film, drawing cheers and whistles from TIFF audiences. Sparsh Shrivastava, who makes his debut with the film, is convincing as a groom yearning for his new bride.
Merrily paced to a tinkering and hummable score, Lost Ladies at first feels like a vibrant heist film. But it gradually exceeds this conceit, offering clever commentary in the farce of patriarchal matrimony and its stifling demands on women.
Effervescently filmed, with an impressive ensemble cast, Rao’s charming, whimsical hoot untangles its labyrinthine web of kinships with a surprising depth and an endearing hilarity. At once a comedy of errors and a feminist coming-of-age tale, Lost Ladies packs a punch in more ways than one.
A must see for those in search of good and meaningful cinema. And, for those who believe that women can rise above their circumstances!