Gori Tere Pyaar Mein
A review by Dr Deena Padayachee
This film was, for me, worth seeing. There are so many parallels with our own country. If you would be bored by a tale of pampered, romantic young activists choosing to live rough and trying to cope with arrogance, corruption, inertia, and thieves and saboteurs, then perhaps you should stay well away from this sparkling movie.
This superb sub-titled Hindi film is about a Tamil lad, Sriram, who has an arranged encounter with a beautiful Tamil lass whose heart has already been snatched by a Sikh. However Sriram has also fallen for a glamorous, but older North Indian social activist who playfully calls him, 'Sridevi', who is a great Tamil movie actress.
I thought that this was going to be a boring tale, till suddenly the story took an unexpected turn and lands in Gujarat.
Now, like many of you, I am accustomed to encountering light-skinned, hyper-intelligent, super-wealthy Gujarati, some of whom have the unerring knack of happily making you feel very black, stupid and irrelevant. However it was quite a surprise to see a side of Gujarat with which I am completely unfamiliar. The roads depicted, if anything, were worse than South Africa's and the public transport system made one feel that this state has entrepreneurs who would fit in very well in the more venal corridors of some South African govt complexes. The other surprise was that many of the villagers were not particularly light skinned. The village is replete with animal excrement and the most basic amenities from electricity to tap water are a problem. And they are not all that noble either!
What a surprise this aspect of Gujarat was! The parallel with the corruption-ridden Transkei was over-whelming. Gujarat spawned Gandhi. The Transkei gave birth to Nelson Mandela. But both states are in a particularly parlous state. The behaviour of the current crop of thieves and politicians is so disrespectful to the legacy that has been bequeathed by such great leaders. I am sure that most of have read how brand new Transkei schools have been dismantled right down to the toilets and children have to be educated out-doors. Even ambulances have been stolen.
The Gujarati children have to traverse a dangerous, delicate rope bridge in order to get to school. The corruption, arrogance and the nauseating, irresponsible, child-like, ubermenschen attitude of the elected officials made one think, inevitably, of the local variety we know so well.
Imran Khan plays a young Bangalore person, Sriram - the kind of South African clone that one often encounters – an irresponsible, immature, rudderless, materialistic, childish fellow (very much like many of the off-spring of some of us) who cares not a hoot for the achievements of the heroes who gave their lives for Indian freedom; he certainly does not have any respect for his antecedents and simply wants to enjoy women, wine and song – simultaneously. Then, in Gujarat, thanks to Dia, he encounters politicians who are as materialistic, selfish and as irresponsible as he is. But Sriram lives in this Gujarati village and he begins to develop a conscience and even a sense of love for his country and his people – a poor, brutalised, exploited people whose blood is his blood. It reminded me of a then unpublishable tale I wrote in 1988 called 'A Letter to the Mayor' which had the Mayor of Durban deciding that he needed to stay in a disenfranchised township as he needed to share the woes of his people. He moves to Phoenix.
The dialogue is intelligent and the acting is superb. Kareena Kapoor Khan plays Dia whom a venal politician dubs 'Mother India'.
There is even a scene where all traffic is brought to a complete halt by vacuous cops (in military-style uniforms) so that politicians can drive by in a convoy like royalty. Dia deals with that in a feminine way and had us guffawing. I think even Gandhi would have smiled – and been appalled by the behaviour of the supercilious big wigs who feel they can do just about anything and get away with it.
Nothing happens easily or quickly. From politicians who could not care less to gargantuan egos and Lilliputian minds our heroic pair encounter the full gamut of obstacles as they try to do the right thing but are obstructed at every turn. Love is certainly a bizarre phenomenon. This older woman is so much trouble for our hero but he does not give up. Sriram is loyal, loving and zealous. He's quite an inspiration. He constantly comes up with ways to over-come problems and wins Dia's heart. Oh, the clever women do love the clever guys!
This film reminded me of what I encountered in Phoenix back in the 1980s when I tried, in that voteless era to get various leaders to address and interact with our violated people. They included the Medical superintendent of the Phoenix Community Health Centre (Dr Charles) to a Zulu economics professor from the U of Zululand. Once a middle-aged Indian stood up at a community meeting and proclaimed proudly that he was 'the agent of the National Party in Phoenix' The misguided fool was not lynched. Most of the people at the meeting had lost their homes because of the Apartheid Group Areas Act.
Gori Tere Pyaar mein has a rustic charm and a refreshing honesty that should appeal to most people. The snippet I particularly savoured was when Sriram and Dia hurl home truths at each other. They are both from relatively wealthy families and she chooses to devote her life to the disadvantaged; however, at that stage of the story she still lives in her comfortable apartment. Sriram's taunt has her making a full commitment to the people of her country.
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