Polite Society movie review: A zany action comedy

Ria and Lena often almost kill each other in their physical duels, but they are also each other’s biggest support, which a little blood here and there doesn’t kill. Plus, Ria, who is training in karate, just won’t let Lena be, getting her to shoot phone videos of her clumsy stunt acts, that she keeps mailing to her idol, Britain’s biggest stunt star.

And then comes Mr Darcy – or, since desis marry desis, Salim (Khanna), the most eligible bachelor of this chic crowd, who is not just successful, he is a successful “geneticist”, doing research to save babies. Plus he lives in a mansion. Plus he has a fierce mother Raheela (Bucha), who has her tentacles, kohl-lined eyes and brocaded padded coats all over this set of polite society.

Ria sees in Lena’s falling for Salim’s undeniable charms the end of her sister’s dreams – and, possibly, hers. For, if Lena the original rebel, succumbs to that ultimate conformity of an “arranged marriage”, what remains of her dreams?

While Ria’s attempts at breaking up this wedding-made-in-mother-heaven are a little over the top, and seem desperate even when Manzoor is lining them with enough humour, the director doesn’t let us settle down to any assumptions.

Waxing is thrust into the face as the torture it can be – and, usually, is – while periods are mentioned more than once to get men to look the other way. Ria and her delightful buddies (Beh, Bruccoleri) may be breaking all the rules in the game both in school and outside, but clearly men are not ready for women like them.

At the same time, Manzoor does not let this descend into a tale about feminism vs conservatism or modernity vs traditions either. All the men and women here, of all races – on both sides — happily mingle, drink, have premarital sex, and curse and invoke Allah without hell breaking loose.

The second half, where Raheela becomes more and more a Disney Cruella creature and the plot descends into incredulous territory, is a bit over-the-top. But one has the suspicion that was precisely the idea, to underline the infantilization of men. The acting is uniformly good, with Kansara getting us to root behind her especially when she is being her most ridiculous – like landing kicks in wedding finery or dancing nattily to the ‘Maar daala’ song from Devdas. Arya is just the right balance between control, exasperation and indulgence as the elder sibling.

But, one must give it up for Bucha (Ms Marvel) as Raheela, for standing in for thwarted ambitions, and for voicing a truth less universally acknowledged, as Austen would have put it: behind every successful man, is a very tired mother.

Polite Society movie director: Nida Manzoor
Polite Society movie cast: Priya Kansara, Ritu Arya, Nimra Bucha, Akshay Khanna, Seraphina Beh, Ella Bruccoleri, Shobu Kapoor, Jeff Mirza
Polite Society movie rating: 3.5 stars