“Bride and Prejudice,” Gurinder Chadha’s latest light-hearted tale of culture clash gives Jane Austen’s classic novel “Pride and Prejudice” the Bollywood treatment, complete with elephants, mehndi, and a genuine Bollywood superstar. While it is a wonderful homage to the billion-dollar Indian industry, “Bride” contains mistakes that prevent this film from being the big blockbuster is deserves to be.
One such fatal flaw is the casting of a relative nobody as the romantic opposite of Bollywood’s biggest female star, Aishwarya Rai. Another thing that might throw off those who are familiar with Bollywood is the inclusion of songs sung in English, but to those who don’t cry at the thought of “Devdas,” this colorful musical with a Hindi twist can be thoroughly pleasing.
The inimitable Rai stars as Lalita, one of the five Bakshi daughters whom mother Bakshi (Nadira Babbar) is all too eager to marry off. While sister Jaya (Namrata Shirodkar) does not particularly care because she is busy falling for the handsome Balraj Bingley (Naveen Andrews), Lalita couldn’t be more frustrated with her mother’s antiquated actions. Throw in Bingley’s stuffy American friend Will Darcy (Martin Henderson) who fancies Lalita, and you’ve got a spicy situation.
Speaking of uneasiness, it is quite upsetting to see Rai matched with Henderson, as the two have as much chemistry as the Odd Couple. It is even visible in the eyes.
During song numbers such as “Balle Balle” and “Dola Dola,” Ash (as she is known to her fans) flirts, seduces, and sneers all in a blink of her beautiful blue eyes. When Darcy stares deeply into the eyes of his beloved; his supposedly smoldering looks come off as glassy-eyed. During one particularly crucial scene, where Lalita finds out Darcy convinced Bingley not to marry Jaya, Henderson’s emotionless declaration of love and blank expression could make watching a piece of wood act more interesting.
While he’s no Shah Rukh Khan, it’s not completely fair to compare Henderson with the king of Bollywood. Despite his shortcomings, Henderson does as best as a fish out of water can, or in his case, a matsya out of pani. Perhaps this difference is due to the varying focuses in the actors respective industries.
Generally speaking, Bollywood is more restrictive in showing the way characters interact. For example, it is taboo to kiss on screen, so one way to express feelings of fondness could be by having a couple frolicking under a waterfall in tight, wet clothes. Perhaps it is then safe to say that Rai is more adept in the art of subtleties, unlike her American counterpart.
Then again, “Bride” isn’t exactly Bollywood. If it was, Shah Rukh Khan would be the lead actor. It is perhaps safest to think of this film as a stepping stone-a picture to help transition those not familiar with song, dance, and more sitars than you can shake a stick at. “Bride and Prejudice” revels in its color, talent, and pleasurability-so should you.
