If you are a female superstar who had taken sabbatical of 15 years , got married, raised two daughters in between then its even more difficult.You have a mountain of your own expectations to overcome...
It helps a bit if your husband is a somewhat successful Producer ,though.
With this background, when Sridevi decided to return to tinsel town, more than an eyebrows was raised about the film and its fate...
But what a COMEBACK it is...even the worst of her critic can not be but awed by the performance, the film and comeback vehicle she has chosen.
No doubt she was extremely lucky to have an author backed ,sensitive yet engrossing story and script which was treated with even more sensitively by first time director Gauri Shinde( Mrs. Balki of Paa and Cheeni Kum fame).
It touched the raw nerve of majority of Indians who have this complex of not been able to speak fluent English and there by not able to progress in their lives.
We love watching the underdog winning against all odds. We visualize ourselves in the situation and derive satisfaction from the victory on screen...
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From the opening frame till the last you have Sridevi everywhere with trademark Balki style tight close-ups and you love it. Its a real treat to her loyal fans.You don't feel or realize that the lady is facing the camera after 15 years or she is touching 50.She looks so fresh and at ease with herself. Apart from few scenes , she never really ACTS, just emotes with the flow of character.The way she changes her facial expression in reaction to her husbands remarks or her daughter's outburst or the french students' overtures is simply amazing. Infact her reactions more than compensate for her Tamil accented ,high pitched voice..
Another important point where Sridevi scores 100 % is backing the character throughout. When you are on a comeback trail , you run the risk of wanting to prov to the audience how you have not lost touch with your tread mark abilities vis a vis to dance or were modern cloths in spite of being on the wrong side of age, or how well you have maintained yourself etc etc. ,even if your character does not demand so.
Due credit must be given to the Director for avoiding these temptations. It must have been very very difficult not to make an accomplished dancer like Sridevi dance in the movie or show her wearing western cloths when abroad.
The simplicity of the character is never lost and that is the biggest plus point...
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We all know how beautiful she looks in sarees but to have her wear cotton sarees in New york also is a gamble wel paid off...I have always felt that the Saree is made for Indian women...It conceals all the "EXTRA" while perfectly emphasising the contours ..A well worn saree carried with ease by the likes of Sridevi is a treat even if its a simple cotton or chiffon...The first time director has shown great maturity and handled the difficult scenes very wel..
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Few things which can be termed as director's cut are1. When angry, you speak in a language you are most comfortable with. Even if the other person does not understand the words, the body language conveys the emotions pretty wel. So when sridevi is angry after her daughter's sudden outburst ,insulting her,she vents out in hindi and effortlessly and unknowingly gives the order for coffee in perfect american english...
2. Love knows no language barrier so the french actor while expressing his affection speaks in french and still Sridevi understands his feelings...Their interactions are very mature and fulfilling.
3. The final exam cum toast by sridevi....again she is shown as hesitant english speaker speaking from heart and hence very effective.
4. While distributing the laddoos to french Colleague , she says...Thank You for making me see positive side of myself again thereby seeing the world around me positively.
5.The "Blink and you will miss HIM" special appearance of the Big B...Maybe because I like anything and everything he does, but he gives the impetus and push required by giving the MANTRA-"बेफिक्र बिन्दास Enjoy करो
6. The song Navrai Mazi and Manhatten are hummable and wel picturised.
There are many many moments in the film for Sridevi to show all her range in acting and she excels throughout.
The biggest thing I like about the movie was, I found the Sridevi of Chandani ..Vulnerable , slightly unsure and hence lovable...
She has always done solid author back roles but later part of her career, she had roles where she was shown as a woman who is totally in control eg. Laadla, Khuda Gawah, Chalbaaz (one character),Lamhe to some extent...
Here she is vulnerable and still the HERO of the movie...One of the major differentiating factor I feel between Madhuri and Sridevi and the reason I like the later more...I know many won't agree to this but I strongly feel so...
The movie is not without its share of flaws, so you have a GODBOLE family reading Navbharat Times.Apart from Sulabha Deshpande nobody remotely looks like GODBOLE or Marathi..She could wel have been shown as an Iyyer considering her accesnt.
Why Motichur Laddoos? Marathi people make Besan or Rawa laddoos more....
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The "Zabaan Sambhalke ( Mind Your Language) portion of the film was always going to be humorous and enjoyable but seems stuck between, french, paki, madrasi and marathi speakers...it could have been more funny...Or maybe not...
The Husband is shown too clichéd and stereotype..Are we HUSBANDS so bad who are completely insensitive towards housewives?
These very minor flaws apart, the movie is an excellent watch and I'm very happy for Sridevi for choosing this script as her comeback film.
Seeing how desperate some of the heroine are for comeback and how bad their choices of films have been , Karisma, Raveena, Manisha,Rani, Preity are cases in point, my respect for SRIDEVI has increased manifold....Looking forward to many more such films from two of the greatest Heroines from my generations and filling the voide...
Go watch Engliश Vingliश ....It may change your perspective about a Housewife....
