MONSOON WEDDING (2001, India, 114 min.), directed by Mira Nair; screenplay by Sabrina Dhawan; cinematography by Declan Quinn, music by Mychael Danna; edited by Allyson Johnson; production design by Stephanie Carroll; with Naseeruddin Shah (Lalit Verma, Father of the Bride), Lillete Dubey (Pimmi Verma, Mother of the Bride), Shefali Shetty (Cousin Ria Verma),Vijay Raaz (P.K.Dubey), Tilotama Shome (Alice), Vasundhara Das (Aditi Verma, the Bride), Parvin Dabas (Hermant Rai, the Groom), Kulbhushan Kharbanda (C.L.Chadha, Pimmi's Brother), Kamini Khanna (Shashi Chadha, his wife), Randeep Hooda (Rahul Chadha, the "Idiot" Son), Rajat Kapoor (Tej Puri, the Verma's Adopted Family Elder), Neha Dubey (Cousin Ayesha Verma, the Dancer), Kemaya Kidwai (Cousin Aliya Verma, her young sister), Ishaan Nair (Varun Verma, Aditi's Brother), Sameer Arya (Vikram Mehta, Aditi's Lover). In English, and Hindi and Punjabi with English subtitles.
Please jot down
responses to the following and answer three in depth.
1. Discuss the title, “Monsoon
Wedding.” What are some of the ways that
this title captures the central mood and themes of this film.
2. The film exposes us to a particular
slice of contemporary Indian society.
Describe this world. Do we ever
see other parts of
3. This is very much a film about family, isn’t it? What does it have to say about family?
4. Let’s assume for the moment that there is such a thing as the genre of the “wedding film”; what might be some of the characteristics of that genre, and how does Monsoon Wedding fit into it?
5. One of the interesting things about the film is the way that we ultimately have not just one wedding, but two. We are obviously meant to compare/contrast the two couples. Do so.
6. Although this is very much an ensemble film (i.e., not a single protagonist), the central character in many ways is Lalit Verma, played by the wonderful Naseeruddin Shah. Discuss this character. Is he complex, does he grow?
7. Discuss the Dubey character. Which scenes with him stick in your mind?
8. Now let’s compare the young women in the film: Aditi, Ria, Alice, Ayesha.
9. How about the role played by women in general in the film?
10. Discuss the Tej Puri subplot. (He is the wealthy adopted patriarch of the family, related to them through marriage.) Why is it important to the film?
11. Discuss the conflict between “tradition” and “modernity” in the film. What are some of the ways in which this theme is played out?
12. What do you think of the film’s ending
(all the way through the end credits)?
In what ways does it nail down the film’s ultimate mood and themes?
13. Music is important in this film, no? Give some examples.
14. Based on the readings that you’ve done, what are some of the ways in which this film reflects Mira Nair’s interests and style?