It is always challenging to portray a sensitive topic like homophobia in a movie. Kudos to the filmmakers of Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga for effortlessly getting across the message while still managing to engage the audience. We see in the Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga film review why this movie will connect with the viewers as it subtly drives home its message.
Sweety Chaudhary who has kept her feelings boxed up since childhood is now grown up, and her father, Balbir Chaudhary, is looking to get her betrothed. Unbeknown to him, Sweety is head over heels with Kuhu (Regina Cassandra), who she met at a family function a year ago. Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga is Sweety’s coming-out story with the help of an unlikely friend in writer Sahil Mirza (Rajkummar Rao), who himself is in love with her after a brief encounter at a rehearsal.
Where Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga excels is in the way in which it handles a delicate topic at the same time not boring the audience with cheesy melodrama. Sonal K. Ahuja who is playing the repressed girl Sweety carries off her part effortlessly. Although her role is pivotal to the story, it is the supporting cast comprising of Anil Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao that keeps the audience glued to their screen.
Some of the most hilarious scenes are those involving Rajkummar Rao and Anil Kapoor along with Seema Pahwa and Brijendra Kala. Also, Juhi Chawla playing a caterer who has lofty notions that she is a talented performer gives us a few laugh-out-loud moments as well. But the real show-stealer here is Balbir’s mother, Beeji, played by Madhumalti Kapoor. The first half of the movie belongs almost entirely to the well-orchestrated scenes with her playing a significant part. The first half of the film is easygoing that helps keep the overall film finely-balanced and not get too tedious. As the second half commences, things do become a tad intense, but still, it does not get overly preachy.
Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga could easily have been a humdrum tale that tries to drive home a message and in the process tires the audience endlessly. Also, the filmmakers cleverly avoid coming across as pretentious by not resorting to below-the-belt one-liners. Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga will entertain the audience for the right reasons as it subtly gets across its message.
Seeing the many ways this endeavor could have been bungled up, one can only appreciate the effort of the filmmakers to stay clear of the potential pitfalls. Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga is not exactly ground-breaking, but it is a neatly-woven story that is engaging and entertaining in equal parts.
If one had to nitpick, there are faults in Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga that one can point out. There are a few scenes that go overboard and will make you roll your eyes. Even in a well-scripted story, Sonam K. Ahuja’s apparent lack of acting prowess does not make it any easier to watch her. Although, this performance will still go down as one of her better ones. And then there is the brother of Sonam Kapoor, Babloo, played by Abhishek Duhan, who comes off as thoroughly confused. He could have played a more prominent role in the movie. Alas, he serves only as a conduit to further the plot as his character is conveniently taken out of the action, merely to be reintroduced in the final act to bring the story to its desired conclusion. Had more thought been put into his character, it would have made for a more engaging watch.
Go and see Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga for its honest attempt to depict the unfortunate reality that many LGBTQ individuals have to face in a society that is reeling under hypocrisy and archaic traditions that serve no purpose other than to repress an individual’s freedom of expression.
(3.5 / 5)
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