English Vinglish

Plot synopsis:
Shashi Godbole (Sridevi) is a housewife who makes and sells laddoos as a home-run business. Her husband Satish (Adil Hussain) and daughter Sapna (Navika Kotia) take her for granted, mock her poor English skills and generally treat her with disrespect, making Shashi feel negative and insecure. However, her young son, Sagar (Shivansh Kotia) loves her as she is, and her mother-in-law (Sulabha Deshpande) offers her words of sympathy.
Shashi's older sister Manu (Sujatha Kumar), who lives in New York, invites Shashi's family to her daughter Meera's (Neeju Sodhi) wedding to Kevin (Ross Nathan). It is decided that Shashi will go to New York alone to help Manu organize the wedding, and her husband and children will join her as the wedding approaches. During her flight to New York, Shashi is given inspirational advice by a fellow passenger (Amitabh Bachchan in Hindi/Ajith Kumar in Tamil). While Shashi is in New York, she has a traumatic experience at a coffee shop due to her inability to communicate in English, but is comforted by the shop's French chef Laurent (Mehdi Nebbou). Using the money she made from selling laddoos, she secretly enrolls in a conversational English class that offers to teach the language in four weeks, showing her resourcefulness at navigating an unfamiliar city alone. The class comprises: David Fischer, the instructor (Cory Hibbs); Eva, a Mexican nanny (Ruth Aguilar); Salman Khan, a Pakistani cab driver (Sumeet Vyas); Yu Son, a Chinese hairstylist (Maria Romano); Ramamurthy, a Tamil software engineer (Rajeev Ravindranathan); Udumbke, a young African-Caribbean man (Damian Thompson); and Laurent. Shashi quickly becomes a promising and committed student, earns everyone's respect with her charming behavior and her cuisine, and gains self-confidence. Laurent becomes attracted to Shashi. When he tries to kiss her at the rooftop of a building, Shashi rejects him and runs off, but fails to explain that she is married.
Meanwhile, Shashi's niece Radha (Priya Anand) who is Meera's younger sister finds out about her secret English classes and is supportive of her pursuit. Shashi starts watching English films at night and does her homework assiduously. To complete the English-speaking course and get a certificate, each student must write and deliver a 5-minute speech. Shashi's family joins her in New York earlier than planned, to surprise Shashi. Shashi tries to continue attending class, but decides to quit because of scheduling conflicts, and asks Radha to inform Fischer. The test date coincides with that of the wedding, and Shashi is forced to miss the test.
Radha invites Fischer and the entire class to the wedding, where Satish is taken aback at being introduced to a diverse group of people by his wife. Shashi gives a touching and enlightening toast to the married couple in English, surprising everyone who knew her as a typical, conservative, Indian housewife. In her speech, Shashi extols the virtues being married and having a family, describing the family as a safe space of love and respect where weaknesses are not mocked. Satish and Sapna regret treating her with disrespect. Fischer declares that she has passed the course with distinction and issues her the certificate. Shashi thanks Laurent for "making her feel better about herself". Shashi's family return to India; during their flight home, Shashi asks the flight attendant in fluent English whether she has any Hindi newspapers.

Tags: romantic

Review:
English is of course the plot element here in this film, written and directed by Gauri Shinde, who has made a film that's strong in heart, and powerful in performance.I'm talking about Sridevi's comeback to cinema, having retired some 15 years ago to raise her kids.
In Shashi's case, this happens to be her lack of command in the English language, perceived to be an ability of social status, made quite unbearable when her children thinks it so, and when her husband (Adil Hussain) also gets in on a private joke with their daughter.The film's story worked on many layers, and what I especially admired is how Sridevi becomes the spokesperson for lessons without being too overt about it, save for the ending speech that hammers in the emotion, and is sure to make your eyes well up.
All these and more, told through a story about a woman finding her inner strength to stand out, stand up and be counted, building and reinforcing confidence that she's more than just a Laddoo machine.But social factors aside, the more obvious ingredient that's put into the movie, is the Mind Your Language type scenes when Shashi enrolls herself into an English crash course to learn conversational English in four weeks.
From a woman who centered her life around family, building a network of friends became something of a lifeline of sorts, in keeping life interesting through the sharing of experiences, and of course, food.English Vinglish has everything a typical Indian film contains, from comedy to romance - handled with such maturity - culture and language.
"If we don't love ourselves we use to attract towards new things but as soon as we began to love ourselves we feel confident and old things look prettier again." This is one dialogue from the movie's lead protagonist which teaches how one can come back to his normal life; English Vinglish is a sweet Laddu with almonds of a logical script, cashew nuts of nice music, raisins of love and pistachios of Hope.
English Vinglish is not about just English classes, it's just a metaphor or platform to narrate a simple yet very effective story of self determination, self respect and love about family and love about ourselves.English Vinglish is undoubtedly a movie about the Family, the children & their attitude towards their parents, the husband who does not see his wife skills and potential beyond a born Laddu Maker and yes, it's about a mother who lost her identity as a woman in the society after marriage being a house wife, as her world does not go beyond her family.Shashi Godbole (Sridevi) is a simple middle class housewife living with her husband Satish (Adil Hussain) along with her daughter Sapna and a son named Sagar in Pune, India.
She left from there and suddenly saw an advertisement for four weeks English speaking classes and that's how she got the way to prove herself by learning a language which is global now and a synonym of 'Being Modern' in Indian societies called English, for Her VINGLISH.Overall, English Vinglish is a memorable watch for the genuine script, superb performances, nice music and definitely the feel good factor it has.
English Vinglish is a beautiful journey that a middle class Indian housewife takes, to regain something she lost or probably never really got, ironically enough, in a foreign land with a foreign language as a tool.The movie has a simple plan, and audience gets to know about it right at the beginning.
There ain't any surprises or twists therein to wow you, its purely the execution of a simple yet universally appealing plot that makes English Vinglish one of the most beautifully made movie of the year.This is a sort of cinema which has traditionally been oiled with loads of melodrama and any director would have wanted to do that considering the fact that people who are going to relate the most with the central character are most prone to be pleasantly affected by the overdose of melodrama ( Yes, I am being a little 'judgemental' here!).
That the film succeeds in making us feel her angst, and her ways of coping with it, showing the kind of situations she encounters, especially when she goes to New York, is a tribute to the story and the performances, especially the virtuoso acting masterclass by Sridevi, who shows, in more ways than one, that she's still got it !The debilitating effect of not knowing the language is brought alive by her mispronounciation of 'Jazz', a visit to her daughter's PTA, her solo trip to New York, handling immigration, her ordeal there buying coffee and various snide ones by both her husband ('She is born to make laddoo's') and her daughter ('Why did you take my book if you cant read ?').
Story: A belittled and insecure Indian housewife,Shashi (Sridevi) enrolls in an English language class.The movie's only drawback is the slow pacing.But yet,first-time director Gauri Shinde does an excellent job in making this movie a delightful one.The music is soothing.The cinematography is top-notch.The dialogs are well-worded The screenplay is water-tight.Performances: Sridevi rocks as Shashi!I feel that her performance must earn an National Award.If not at least a Film-fare Award.Kudos to her!
To sum-up the experience of watching 'English vinglish' in one word - Beautiful!I had the least expectations from a come-back movie of Sri Devi, but no one could have done a better job for this role.
With due respect to Dilip Kumar, Kamal Hassan, and even Amitabh Bachchan, Sridevi stands as the sole female actor in a country whose native cinema has historically preferred its women to be little more than ornamental showpieces to equal and even generally outrank and outshine her male counterparts by building a legacy that is as artistically rich as it is historically significant.She has achieved every benchmark befitting a historic thespian who is now commonly referred to as "India's Meryl Streep": as the only Indian actor (male or female) to have achieved supremacy in every major regional language of the World's Largest Film Industry, her return to the silver screen is not one that can go unnoticed.
Fifteen years after her last film, Judaai (in which she triumphantly played a materialistic husband-selling virago), she returns to the big screen with a difficult but simple story of a middle class housewife named Shashi who finds her life, relationships, and identity limited by the fact that she cannot speak English.
Star Cast: Sridevi, Adil Hussain, Mehdi Nebbou, Amitabh Bachchan (cameo)What's Good: Original Queen of cinema is back, Gauri Shinde's spectacular debut as a director, spectacular performances all aroundWhat's Bad: Not much, a bit slow maybe at timesLoo Breaks: None.Watch or Not: Comeback of the year > You would want to catch Sridevi, who is present in almost every frame here, even a 15 years sabbatical and yet no hint of rust whatsoever, is commanding and totally in the role of Shashi Godbole.
A light hearted ,feel good movie made with a big heart and so near to the real world we live in, music and cinematography add to the cinematic brilliance.English Vinglish is a smart, crisp tale of an average Indian housewife (yes, she's a good cook, a caring lady) who tries and breaks the shackles and tell the world there's high time they better take notice and respect her for what she is and not just crap her down with her insensitiveness,she is devastated at times as her teenage daughter tortureher for not knowing the language.
The Dialogues are quite realistic and there are times when you would find that Shashi is shown very helpless, especially in the first half, adds on to the vulnerability and the likability factor even though you hate her daughter who hates her for not knowing the language.English Vinglish Review –: Star Performances Sridevi as Shashi Godbole shines out, she connects with the masses and one cant help but feel that the 49 year old actor's 15 year vanvaas was a tad too long.
French actor Mehdi Nebbou is well cast and his eyes speak a lot as he tries his best to bring back love in Shashi's life.The characters in Shashi's English class are well cast and there's a South Indian, a Chinese, A Spanish , gay teacher and an African who bring the cheer here, a certain taxi driver Salman Khan too from Pakistan, whom you just don't wanna miss.
When you count the best movies of the year , English Vinglish would be right up there in the Top 5, would have gone with a 3.5*, but Big B's cameo and Gauri Shinde's 1st outing deserves a 4* from my desk .It's a movie made with a big heart, a great comeback , an emotional feel-good tale you don't wanna miss.Take some lessons from Devi and pay her your obeisance , you will surely be rewarded so much on the EQ front.
Good things come in small packages and "English Vinglish" is the latest addition to such a package.Simple,sweet,predictable film which never tries to do more or different, much like its lovable protagonist.Sridevi is terrific in her comeback venture and gives a performance which would rank among her best along with Sadma.
Debutant director Gauri Shinde's blotted approach,treatment, casting and crisp editing makes EV a joyride which could be otherwise a saccharine tale of a lost housewife.Adil Hussain, Mehdi Nebbou(remember Munich),the two kids,the niece,the teacher,the class-mates are all perfect in their roles and add so much without trying anything at all.As a feel good movie to bring a smile to your face, I found it way better than Barfi,the latest sensation.You can avoid it if you are not much into sweets but if you try this LADDU without being much JUDGEMENTAL you may end up liking it.Anyway,it does not have much side effects..
English Vinglish, just like the Laddoos, it's lead protagonist Shashi so craftily supplies throughout the movie, is as simple, sweet and tasty.This is essentially a story of a simple housewife who craves respect, and instead, is mostly subjected to ridicule by her family for not speaking or understanding English.
That my friends is what this film is about.And yet, like the delicate 'bondees' that stick together to form that Laddoo, English Vinglish is a film that is held together by a fantastic performance by an erstwhile superstar who makes it impossible to even imagine that she took a sabbatical of - hold your breath - 16 years before returning to the screen, and deftly once again in our hearts with this film.Sridevi, as 'Shashi' is in superb form, and gives us a performance unlike any you might have seen her before.
She is like the glue that helps add everything together - be it the subtle messages, beautiful performances, or serene screenplay.Gauri Shinde, the débutante director and scriptwriter reminds us how your family can never let you feel down, how if you love yourself, you can once again gain equality in a relationship, how the heart craves respect and not love, when it really boils down to a choice between the two, and how it isn't anything to be ashamed of if you don't know English, but it might just break your heart when those closest to you might be judgmental of you due to that fact.)The motley cast and crew ably supports Sridevi in this journey, be it Adil Hussain as her husband Satish who loves his wife, but maybe takes too many things for granted, Mehdi Nebbou as the French cook who in spite of being a student, is also a teacher to Shashi, Priya Anand as Radha, the younger niece who comes at just the right places and helps bring back the spring to Shashi's steps yet again, and last but not the least, Amitabh Bacchan in an excellent cameo who manages to cajole Shashi to take that important leap of faith and spread her wings.Set in mostly Pune, and Manhattan (the city as well as the suburbs), this is a film that is light, simple, and yet effective.
The humor is subtle, the racial discrimination portrayed in a practical hue, the pain natural, and the end credits making you feel that it should have run for a bit more.In hindsight, maybe a few more subtitles (especially when the French gentleman speaks), and further character development would have added further essence like a 'kishmish' might to a Laddoo, but then again, its how the cook, in this case the director Gauri Shinde, decides to serve the laddo, to ensure its good for both the diabetic as well as the gourmet, and we will leave her to serve it the way she deems it best.Having said that, let me remind you once again, to go for the film.
The good thing of this movie is it's writing, take that scene in which Shashi gets a call from her daughter when she was looking for her scrapbook, and here it isShashi : "Maine use chupaya taaki main bhi na padh sakoo" Daughter :Padhna Aaye tab na" That is, "How can you read, when you don't know" The supporting cast has also done well from a French cook to a Pakistani guy, they all teamed up well, but it has it's share of not so likable or rather preachy moments like the teacher being gay.
I have seen this movie numerous times till date but tonight while I was watching it again, I felt a sudden urge to write a bit about this movie.English Vinglish is one of the most original, priceless movies to have come along in the recent past.A very big salute to Gauri to have written such a script and for the way Sridevi acted in this film.
If anyone wants to know the meaning of a feel good movie, please watch English Vinglish.Sridevi did a superb depiction of a simple non English speaking housewife and her family acted very realistically as snobby husband and daughter who are sometimes ashamed of their wife/mother's absence of English speaking skills.Sridevi was always a good actress and with this film, she has proved that she is even better.
Sridevi has made a return to film in this meaty role in which she plays Shashi, a traditional lady in India who speaks mostly Hindi while her husband and children are very versed in English.
Gauri Shinde's direction deserves special applaud.She carved Shashi's character with minutest details, and those have been showcased by Sri in the finest possible manner.A complete family entertainer,hands down the best movie of this year so far Watch it to know why this movie got a 10 min standing ovation at Toronto film Festival..
* sri devi costumes were classy.....Amitabh cameo appearance was superb and tells a wonderful dialouge "US Visa Authority Officer : "What is the purpose of your visit?"Amitabh : I want to spend some dollars to help the American economy recover."Extraordinary dialogues with very fast Screenplay...Overall the movie takes u every 10 minutes with a laugh and makes u Sad....Fine Entertainer I recommend u to watch in Hindi to feel the original .....Sridevi plays the central role of a Pune-based Maharashtrian housewife Shashi Godbole , who enrols for an English language course in order to please her husband and family.
The mistake is finally realized by the daughter in the film while Sri delivers her emotional wedding speech in the end with twinkles in her eyes and their loving hug brings the family back together as never before.Therefore, English Vinglish is a film which deserves to be watched not only by all those House Wives who need to re-invent themselves urgently but its even a more essential watch for all the Husbands and Kids since it has got a valuable lesson for them too in its 135 minutes of entertainment.
She left from there and suddenly saw an advertisement for four weeks English speaking classes and that's how she got the way to prove herself by learning a language which is global now and a synonym of 'Being Modern' in Indian societies called English, for Her VINGLISH.This is a brilliant film and sridevi did full justice to her role.
Gauri Shinde's story of a simple Indian housewife-entrepreneur (yes, you read that right!) and her little act of courage to earn respect from her own family is feel-good, funny and tear-inducing - all at the same time.A housewife's lack of knowledge of the English language makes her the subject of domestic banter.
Let me admit that I was never a Sridevi fan in my life (even after watching all her fantastic performances in various characters), however, the temptation to see the actress come back in the celluloid after some 15 years was enough for me go for English Vinglish.The movie of course speaks about a woman who does know how to speak the language of English- a very unambiguous and common subject considering the backgrounds of middle class Indian family housewives and their extremely "anti-western" exposure.
It was spectacular to watch Shashi and the French man (played by French actor Mehdi Nebbou) speak in Hindi and French respectively to each other while venting out their personal emotionscinematic excellence indeed!'When someone tells us how beautiful we are, we feel like living that old, jaded and forlorn life again with renewed freshness'- Shashi confesses this to the man who is almost the Yeatsian "face amid a crowd of stars" who "loved the pilgrim soul in her and the sorrows of her changing face".Shashi teaches us the biggest lessonthat we may not be as "judgmental" as others are towards us.A beautiful film, wonderful performances and a complete heartwarming experience it was.The humble appeal of English Vinglish and the detailed description of the innuendos of a woman faced with the inability to speak English connect all the dots and make it a complete must watch for all.P.S- Turned into a Sridevi fan Basked in the glory of Bachchan retreat for some minutes.
English Vinglish is a simple, funny, and engaging and touching film that succeeds with the help of Sridevi and the casts' performances and Gauri Shinde's strong understanding of the characters she created.Verdict: 6.2 out of 10.