Sridevi is the film’s backbone. To her good fortune, and ours, the film is supported by a uniformly impeccable cast. Hardly ever in recent times have I seen so many wonderful performers in one film who don’t seem to ‘perform’ at all. Whether it’s Shashi’s immediate family, or her sister’s family in the US, and her classmates at the coaching institute – every character stays with us. Every person populating the plot is vididly sketched.
Finally, of course, this is Sridevi’s film. In the past she has given outstanding performances in awful films like “Nagina” and “Judaai”. Here her inviolable virtuosity and exceptional grace get brilliant support from every department of the film.
Specially memorable are her scenes with her French co-star Mehdi Nebbou who is so splendidly supportive, we forget what a major star he is in France.
Each time the two get passionate and emotional about one another, they speak in their native tongues, certain that their words would not impede the meaning of their thought expression.
Words, this beautiful work of unassuming art tells us, are redundant. More so, when the embodiment of silent eloquence Sridevi needs to express her inner thoughts. She never allows her character to look like a victim. That is the real triumph of “English Vinglish”.
Sublime, subtle, seductive and thoroughly engaging “English Vinglish” is in some ways, a life-changing experience. It turns around the male gaze, making patriarchal tyranny seem like an acceptable tradition that we never thought we needed to break. With oodles of persuasive charm, the director breaks down the bastion of male pride with a film that generations will look back on with affection. As for the incandescent Sridevi, was she really away for 16 years? She makes the contemporary actresses, even the coolest ones, look like jokes with her flawless interpretation of a woman who seeks only respect because love, she already has.
Flaws? Yes one. Amitabh Bachchan’s cameo, interesting as it is, overstays its welcome. Actually Shinde plays the Big B the best possible compliment in the opening credits: “100 Years Of Indian cinema 70 Years Of Amitabh Bachchan.”
To that we can add, a good 40 years of Sridevi. If you watch only two films every year make sure you see “English Vinglish” twice!
