Angry Indian Goddesses Is A Powerful, Relevant Film

Pan Nalin's Angry Indian Goddesses features seven characters and such is the depth in the film's writing that it feels each of them is the movie's chief protagonist. Ostensibly, it'd seem that this is the story of Frieda (Sarah Jane-Dias), who's getting married and has invited her gang of female friends to Goa for some harmless pre-marital banter and cake.

But as the narrative paces ahead, we discover the stories of each of her five friends and one Brit cousin (a stunning Amrit Maghera), who has come to India with the hope of cracking it big in Bollywood (an apt Katrina Kaif joke is included).

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Going into the details of each of their stories wouldn't be entirely possible without letting out the spoilers, but each segment holds an ugly mirror to contemporary society, seeped in deep-rooted patriarchy, gender-bias and simmering sexism.

What makes the film accessible is the fact that it is delightfully free of overarching preachiness. By weaving a story around seven girls on a Goan sojourn, Nalin peppers the conversations with a casual, non-serious vibe and lighthearted humour. It is only towards the end that a sense of darkness creeps in and one realises the complete magnitude of what problems women face, an entire set that men don't even have to worry encountering because they are the very cause of it.

Having said that, the film could have easily become an over-the-top feminist melodrama with an ample amount of male-bashing, but that isn't the case either. "Women are women's worst enemies," Sandhya Mridul's character, an entrepreneur with shades of grey, yells. Later on, this will be illustrated with a scene where a character says how her mother-in-law is sending her to gynecs to fix the problem that actually lies with the husband.

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While articulating issues plaguing the modern Indian woman, the film also delves into the helplessness of their struggle, the determination of their fights and how, for any society to change, the paradigm needs to be shaken from within and not just from outside.

While the film's dialogue may get heavy at times, it is the evenly sharp performances of these wonderful women that makes AIG gripping. Whether it is Sarah's secret that she hides with heartbreaking vulnerability or Tannishtha Chatterjee's NGO worker who comes much late in the movie, with the ease that says she always belonged here, the film is finely acted. Among them all, it is Pavleen Gujral who steals the show with a nuanced performance. Anushka Manchanda's troubled musician role too, is worth applauding.

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More than anyone, AIG needs to be seen by all men.

To make our folk more sensitive, more responsible, and most of all, more understanding towards the needs of the fairer sex. Things we take for granted -- like a sense of freedom and safety -- shouldn't be something they should fight for. If anything, it must be the men folk who must.

After all, the wrath of a Goddess can be bloody and destructive.

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