I wanted to like “A Nice Indian Boy.”
A really good romance comedy film that incorporates witty banter and the near break-up or happy ending is gratifying.
“A Nice Indian Boy,” with its cross-cultural, queer love story and will-they-or-won’t-they family acceptance narrative, seemed promising. I was ready for a South Asian version of “The Wedding Banquet” – another gay marriage film with sharp dialogue and fun characters that still felt true, but this time with a big Bollywood dance number.
“A Nice Indian Boy” opens with an introduction to Naveen (played by Karan Soni.) He’s a buttoned-up, awkward, first-gen doctor who came out to his family years before, but has shared so little about his life that his traditional East Indian family must glean what they can about gay culture from reality TV.
That all changes after Naveen’s meet-cute with Jay at a Hindu temple. Jay (played by Jonathan Groff) is a white freelance photographer with a strong connection to Indian culture. His idea of a first date? A classic Bollywood film, where he shares his belief that, “Most people are embarrassed by the bigness of love.” Naveen is, Jay isn’t, and the movie charts the love story of these two very different characters in five sections.
There are the predictable conflicts: commitment, acceptance by family and friends, and whether their shared dream of a big wedding will ever come true.
Sometimes a romcom’s familiarity, corniness, and less-than-believable characters are charming. But “A Nice Indian Boy” left me conflicted. It has so much going for it, but I found the execution lacking. The dialogue seemed stilted, the character choices were perplexing, and the lead characters’ chemistry was weak.
Another challenge: Naveen’s mother, father, and married sister are caricatured in the first half. As the film continues, however, the family explores some of the most interesting questions: How do first gen children deal with the cultural expectations of their immigrant parents and the reality of their new culture? How does a family navigate its tradition of arranged marriages when one child is expected to follow custom and the other is not? How does love blossom over time?
Naveen’s family, and the different paths they take to accepting his relationship, are the core of the movie. The comedic actress Zarna Garg, who plays his mother, has some terrific moments in the movie’s final scenes. Sunita Mani plays Naveen’s sister and Harish Patel his father.
Roshan Sethi directed the film, which is unrated and filmed in Vancouver, from a script written by Eric Randall, adapted from the play of the same name by Madhuri Shekar.
I’m happy to say my ambivalence about “A Nice Indian Boy” was not shared by many. It was part of the South by Southwest Festival, received a 98% on Rotten Tomatoes and is a New York Times Critic’s pick. Plus, it’s on Park City Film’s schedule, showing this weekend.
So, should you see it? That’s up to you…
