THE DATE WITH ONESELF... THE CENTRE OF ALL RELATIONSHIPS






Pic.: Manoj Nair

A couple of months ago, when I had watched in the theaters the trailer of the movie, ‘‘Margarita With A Straw’, I instantly loved it. From whatever bit they showed of the wheelchair-bound Kalki Koechlin (who plays a cerebral palsy), I could sense that it would be a good movie. So, I wanted to watch it whenever it was released. But, my wife said, “Don’t go by the trailers… The movie may not be ‘that’ good.”

That was it. I completely forgot about the movie, particularly its name.

Months passed by. Yesterday was a Sunday… I had a busy day. Late in the evening, I checked in the newspaper if there was a good movie running. I wanted something light and nice. So, when I saw the small ad about this movie – ‘Margarita With A Straw’, let me confess, I really thought it was an English movie… I didn’t, even for a fraction of a second, recall the trailer I had liked… Kalki on the wheelchair and my wife’s reaction to it… yes, none of these came to my mind. “A heart-warming movie,” the newspaper ad said, “It will make you feel happy.”

My wife and I wanted a heart-warming movie; so, off we went to IMAX, Wadala.  At the ticket counter, I was told, “Sir, it is an ‘Adult’ movie… Just to make sure that there isn’t any non-adult’! I did not know it was an ‘Adult’ movie… In fact, my wife and I hadn’t even bothered to check anything other than what we wanted – ‘A heart-warming movie’.

After I came out with the tickets, I said to my wife, “It is an ‘Adult’ movie.”

“It will be a good movie, don’t worry,” my wife assured me.

We were in…

The moment the movie started, both, my wife and I, realized that it was that same movie, whose trailer I had liked, but she hadn’t… Now, from the very first frame, we were captivated by the sensitive story of buoyant ‘Laila’ – a cerebral palsy – who longed for a normal life like the rest of us…  It is the story about her physical and emotional needs… Her need to be accepted, loved, romanced and validated as a normal young-woman. She is courageous, mentally strong. She is playful and curious. Above all, she is honest. During her stay in New York, she discovers that she is a bisexual…

I admire the way the writer, director and the producer of the of the movie, Mrs. Shonali Bose, has handled the complex subject with such grace and dignity… that, while watching the movie, we really could empathize with the plight of Laila and her parents.


What prompts me to write this Post, today, is the movie’s end.

Laila has come to Delhi, on a brief vacation, with her blind girlfriend, Khanum. She tells her mother the truth about her relationship with Khanum and also about her bisexuality. The mother is torn emotionally… When Laila tells Khanum the truth about her bisexuality, Khanum gets into a rage… Laila’s mother, who had been her pillar of strength, succumbs to cancer... Khanum goes back to New York… And, Laila decides to stay back here in Delhi… In that last scene, she is shown taken to a parlor for a new hairdo… The phone rings… and she tells the caller that she is having her new hairdo… “I am going on a date,” she tells with a happy and confident smile on her face…

“Date with whom?” the caller asks…

The next moment we see Laila in a lovely restaurant… enjoying her favorite drink – ‘Margarita, with a straw’… and she not only appears happy, peppy and strong, she appears free and peaceful, too…

Yes, Laila is on a date… that much-needed date of all dates - the date with oneself… The center of all relationships!

If you are an ‘adult’, and if you haven’t watched this movie, yet, I suggest, you please do…  Yes, it is really a heart-warming movie… and, it will make you feel happy.


GERALD D’CUNHA



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