capsule : the verma family is having a wedding and all the relatives will come for the multi - day festivities .
mira nair 's film is pleasant enough with a little human drama , a few family secrets , some sadness and some happiness .
you have seen it all before , but perhaps not from india .
the photography is colorful and the music is very agreeable
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low +2 ( -4 to +4 ) mira nair previously directed salaam bombay and mississippi masala .
her newest film , written by sabrina dhawan , is very similar to previous films like betsy 's wedding but it is set in new delhi .
a wealthy family is having a wedding .
an indian wedding is a multi - day affair as much a family reunion as a nuptial .
even more than in the us , it is an excuse for a lavish and extravagant family get - together .
the film shows us what the family does together and at the same time follows several family members ' individual story lines .
aditi verma is marrying hemant , an indian engineer working in the us .
she had previously had a relationship with vikram , her supervisor .
latit , her father ( played by naseeruddin shah ) , is juggling many problems , not the least of which is worrying about the caterer has hired pk dubey .
dubey is a rather eccentric man with a taste for eating the marigolds he uses for decoration .
even dubey will soon be romantically entangled when he becomes interested in alice , one of the family servants .
several family members arrive giving rise to several plotlines involving sex , family secrets , or both .
there are heartbreaks and there are people falling in love .
some of the subjects covered are probably near taboo for indian films .
western audiences will appreciate a look at unfamiliar indian customs like women painting their hands with henna .
on the other hand it was not clear ( to me at least ) if scenes like the family singing together are typical of indian culture or if they are a convention of indian musical films .
this seems a particularly westernized family with the father wearing american designer sweaters and the family speaking mostly english .
the latter will , however , help with an international release .
sabrina dhawan 's screenplay is vibrant with witty dialog .
we have seen films with plotting very much like this , but the indian setting makes a great deal of difference .
director mira nair calls the film an affirmation of life .
i rate it a 7 on the 0 to 10 scale and a low +2 on the -4 to +4 scale .
vibrant with witty dialog makes a great deal of difference the photography is colorful and the music is very agreeable