By: Somesh Vasishth
It's a sheer magic of Punjabi Tadka, which turns any given bland diet in the world into spicy yet salubrious meal. Being a Punjabi herself, Gurinder just uses the age-old mama's trick to infuse life into Jane Austen's most prized work.
She pits 21st century Will Darcy (Martin Henderson) against Lalita Bakshi (Aishwarya Rai) in a Punjabi shadi backdrop, where Dhols soft-pedal gentle pianos and corsets give way to exquisite saris.
However our blue-blooded Darcy still suffers from the colonial hangover and dismisses her as just another village belle. Apparently some sparks fly as they rub each other up the wrong way.
But as they say in Bollywood, 'Pyar to Hona Hi Tha'.
Despite some bitter encounters and comedy of errors, the two find themselves drawn towards each other. And that is enough to give heart burn to Mrs Bakshi (Nadira Zaheer
Babbar), who sees Balraj (Naveen Andrews), Darcy's friend, a British Asian from London, a perfect alliance for her eldest daughter, Lalita.
What follows is very similar to the original Jane Austen bestsellar, 'Pride and Prejudice'. Just like Jane Austen, Chadhah depicts the conflict between Darcy and Elizabeth not due to their social status but due to their cross cultures.
Though Ash works hard to enthuse life into Lalita Bakshi but doesn't quite meet the expectations in her English spouting avatar. However, Bride And Prejudice still manages to deliver because of it's inherent verve and charm.
Anupam Kher as Mr Bakshi is as competent as ever. Daniel Gillies as Johnny Wickham, is efficient in a role that has negative shades. Nitin Ganatra as a green card holder, Mr Kohli, brings the slapstick into this British musical.
Santosh Sivan captures the day with his impeccable cinematography while Anu Malik manages to lend some pleasant melodies to the ears.
Gurinder definitely deserves a pat the her back for a cleverly scripted film, which uses every possible success formula in the book to garner a hit. Though she may not get the benevolent press around the world but what the heck, we are Bollywood. We dream big.
On the whole, Bride and Prejudice amply delivers what it promises- a beautiful bride and lots laughter and entertainment.
