Semanti Chakladar
Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan is the story of a family’s tumultuous journey of accepting their gay son - Jitendra Kumar - and his boyfriend - Ayushmann Khurrana. It is an excellent foray into LGBTQ+ representation in Bollywood. After the scrapping of Article 377, which criminalized homosexuality, one can hope for even more nuanced takes in the years to come.
As far as a dignified and realistic approach to gay representation is considered, SMZS works remarkably well. It does not depend on any caricatures of gay stereotypes. No excessively flamboyant effeminate men. The gay protagonists are affectionate, masculine, and well-written individuals in love. There are indeed some tropes characteristic of a masaaledar rom-com. There are some sexist stereotypes of women working in the kitchen, some fun at the expense of a disabled bride, the elder brother’s wife vs the younger brother’s wife and so on. But at the same time, perhaps the movie wanted to showcase the typical upper-middle-class Hindu family. Maybe the comedy serves as a slight parody too. And there are more than enough witty comebacks from these characters to make it passable if you want to turn your brain off and just enjoy.
The plot is predictable, but nothing unfamiliar from the daily struggle of the Indian LGBTQ+ community to get accepted by their own families and society at large. There’s also a happy ending, where the family begins to come around, which is something a lot of people in the community would appreciate. There’s a dearth of happy, well-rounded gay characters in Bollywood. Too often, the trope of the gay sidekick or the traumatized gay individual is employed.
The movie could have handled the relationship of its two protagonists better: we do not get their backstory or nuances of their everyday life before they come into contact with the families. The pain of separation or even anxiety at forcibly being married to a straight woman - these things take a backseat for comedy. Kumar’s character seems wooden at times, pointed out by his partner, too. However, it raises the question of why men must prove themselves by “standing up” to the head of the household, i.e., the patriarchal figure at home.
The movie’s heart lies in its overwhelming enthusiasm and defence of love - from defending the science behind love itself to explaining the difference between gender and sex. From portraying the violence of coming out to your family to the uneasy acceptance that comes after a tearful struggle (with beatings at times), the movie gracefully shows being gay in India. It is in no way a harmful representation and might even open up conversations in homes. However, it would be nice to see more inclusive and diverse takes - including characters who are not upper-class, Savarna men.
Some people have pointed out that Indian society is not the best at investing in serious social issues at the blockbuster level, so maybe comedy is the way to go. At least, for now. We do hope to see queer people from a range of backgrounds in India positively represented in the future.
Sources:
Comments