A Suitable Girl (film)

A Suitable Girl is a 2017 documentary film directed by Sarita Khurana and Smriti Mundhra. The film was screened at SAWCC on April 7, 2017[2] before premiering on April 22 at the Tribeca Film Festival, winning the Albert Maysles New Documentary Director Award. Khurana and Mundra were the first Desi women to earn the New Documentary Director Award.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] The film has also been screened at the British Film Institute Festival, Mumbai Film Festival, AFI Docs, Amazon and Netflix.[3][12][13] In 2018, Library Journal reviewed and recommended the film be included in library collections.[14]

A Suitable Girl
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
Produced by
  • Cal Amir (exec.)
  • Antara Bhardwaj (associate)
  • Sarita Khurana
  • Smriti Mundhra
  • Jennifer Tiexiera
Written by
  • Sarita Khurana
  • Smriti Mundhra
  • Jennifer Tiexiera
Music by
Cinematography
  • Naiti Gámez
  • Shivani Khattar
  • André de Alencar Lyon
Edited byJennifer Tiexiera
Production
company
The Marriage Brokers
Distributed byCollective Eye Films
Release date
  • 22 April 2017 (2017-04-22)
Running time
90 minutes[1]

Plot

A Suitable Girl follows three young women in India as they struggle to follow their dreams amid familial and cultural pressures to get married. Ritu, Dipti and Amrita are educated, financially stable contemporary middle-class women living in Mumbai and New Delhi. Yet their lives take a dramatic turn when the pressure to settle down and get married hits. Documenting the matchmaking process in vérité over four years, A Suitable Girl examines the complex relationships between marriage, family, and culture.[15][16][17][18][19]

Cast
A screenshot of the trailer showing Amrita.
  • Dipti Admane, a 29-year-old schoolteacher who lives with her parents near Mumbai.[20]
  • Amrita Jhanwar, a party and career girl in her mid-20s living in New Delhi.[20]
  • Ritu Taparia, a 22-year-old who works in Mumbai's financial district.[20]
  • Sima Taparia, a matchmaker and the mother of Ritu.[20] She would later appear as the host of Mundhra's next project, Indian Matchmaking.

Production

A Suitable Girl was co-directed by Sarita Khurana and Smriti Mundhra. They met in film school at Columbia University School of the Arts connecting over their similar Indian backgrounds and wanted to create a film that explored the complexities of arranged marriages. They followed Dipti, Amrita, and Ritu over four years as they navigated their daily lives, careers, families, and friends.[9][21][22][23]

Reception

The film received generally positive reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 88%, based on 16 reviews.[24] Many praised the film for having an unbiased look at the marriage customs in India.[25][26][27][28][29][30][31]

Frank Sheck of The Hollywood Reporter praised the film for examining "the difficulties women face in Indian society," as well as having "engaging personalities of its subjects and their families."[32] Nick Schager of Variety called the film "a stark look at that country's ongoing clash between modernity and tradition when it comes to female independence (or lack thereof)."[33] Barbara Shulgasser-Parker of Common Sense Media gave the film a 3/5 rating, stating that it "wisely tells its absorbing story without narration."[1]

Roger Moore of Movie Nation gave the movie a 2.5/4 rating, calling it "a fascinating look into a custom that the movies and TV have only touched on and mentioned with a raised eyebrow of mild dismissal."[34] Paul Parcellin of Film Threat gave the film an 8.5/10, saying that the film was an "honest look at a world that might be quite foreign to many of us," praising its "clear-eyed, unbiased look" at the topic of marriage.[35]

Nathaniel Hood of The Young Folks gave the movie a 5/10, saying that the film "seems to argue that the whole process of parental matchmaking is an endurable hassle that inevitably leads to happy marriages."[36] Wendy Ide of Screen Daily criticized the film, saying that the film provides little insight of a "vast and complex subject."[37]

Awards and nominations
Tribeca Film Festival
Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Albert Maysles New Documentary Director Award February 6, 2017 Best New Documentary Filmmaker Sarita Khurana, Smriti Mundhra Won [38]
Best Editing Best Editing in a Documentary Film Jennifer Tiexiera Nominated [39]
Best Editing in a Documentary Feature Film Jennifer Tiexiera Nominated [39]
Jury Award Best Documentary Feature Sarita Khurana, Smriti Mundhra Nominated [40]

References
  1. Shulgasser-Parker, Barbara. "A Suitable Girl". Common Sense Media.
  2. "Screening of "A Suitable Girl" with Directors Sarita Khurana and Smriti Mundhra – Saturday, April 7, 2–5PM". SAWCC. March 7, 2018.
  3. Kathryn Shattuck (2018-04-06). "This Week: Getting Crafty in the Bronx, 'Paterno,' Eric B. & Rakim on Tour". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  4. "Directors use film to speak on social issues at 2017 Tribeca Film Festival". NBC News. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  5. Bender, Abbey (2018). "A Suitable Girl". Pine Magazine. No 2: 108–110.
  6. Rao, Sameer (2017-04-28). "Award-Winning Desi Directors Tackle Arranged Marriage Stigma in 'A Suitable Girl'". COLORLINES. Retrieved 2020-05-20.
  7. Hubbard, Sally (2018-10-23). "Women Killing It". Women You Should Know®. Retrieved 2020-04-14.
  8. Choudhury, Bedatri Datta (2018-05-28). "Three Weddings and a Documentary". Vice. Retrieved 2020-04-14.
  9. Majumdar, Anushree (2017-10-27). "Heart of the Matter". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  10. Das, Kavita. "Analysis | India has changed a lot in 70 years. But arranged marriage remains the norm". Washington Post. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  11. Scheck, Frank (24 April 2017). "'A Suitable Girl': Film Review | Tribeca 2017". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  12. Reporter, India-West Staff. "Indian American Filmmakers Sarita Khurana, Anula Shetty Named 2020 CAAM Fellows". India West. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  13. Barlow, Nigel (2019-11-21). "In Her View film season announced for HOME Manchester". About Manchester. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  14. Druda, Ellen (2018-11-01). "Media Review: A Suitable Girl". Library Journal. 143 (18) – via Education Research Complete.
  15. Allen, Joseph (21 April 2017). "Tribeca 2017 Women Directors". womenandhollywood.com. Retrieved 2020-01-25.
  16. Menon, Radhika (April 2, 2018). "'A Suitable Girl' Sheds Light On The Unequal Sacrifices Women In Arranged Marriages Are Required To Make". Decider.
  17. "A Suitable Girl". Collective Eye Films.
  18. Misra, Anjali (November 17, 2018). "A Suitable Girl Profiles the Journeys of Three Women Navigating the Next Step — Marriage". The Aerogram.
  19. "A SUITABLE GIRL – Directed by Sarita Khurana and Smriti Mundhra". The University of British Columbia. January 7, 2020.
  20. Sezín Koehler (September 26, 2018). "BGN Film Review: 'A Suitable Girl'". Black Girl Nerds.
  21. Cornelious, Deborah (2019-09-14). "'Ready or Not' review: Here comes the bride". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  22. Lee, Ashley (18 April 2017). "'A Suitable Girl' Doc Explores Arranged Marriage in India (Exclusive Video)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  23. Haber, Liam (April 1, 2018). "Exclusive: Director Sarita Khurana On Making 'A Suitable Girl". The Knockturnal.
  24. "A SUITABLE GIRL". Rotten Tomatoes.
  25. Jao, Charline (April 28, 2017). "Review: A Suitable Girl Is a Nuanced Look at Marriage and Tradition in India". The Mary Sue.
  26. Kermode, Jennie (March 27, 2018). "A Suitable Girl". Eye For Film.
  27. O'Neal, Kristen (April 25, 2017). "TRIBECA Film Festival Review: A SUITABLE GIRL". Birth.Movies.Death.
  28. Coplen, Katherine (August 16, 2017). "Heartland Cultural Journey Review: A Suitable Girl". Nuvo.
  29. Suh, Elissa (May 3, 2017). "In Defense of Tribeca: Closing Notes from the 2017 Film Festival". Mubi.
  30. Desai, Rahul (October 9, 2017). "8 Hidden Gems At Mumbai Film Festival 2017". Film Companion.
  31. Gupta, Prachi (May 30, 2017). "Becoming an Unsuitable Girl". Jezebel.
  32. Scheck, Frank (April 24, 2017). "'A Suitable Girl': Film Review – Tribeca 2017". The Hollywood Reporter.
  33. Schager, Nick (April 22, 2017). "Film Review: 'A Suitable Girl'". Variety.
  34. Moore, Roger (March 26, 2018). "Movie Review: Arranged marriages for "A Suitable Girl" are more complicated than you think". Movie Nation.
  35. Parcellin, Paul (April 1, 2018). "A SUITABLE GIRL". Film Threat.
  36. Hood, Nathaniel (April 22, 2017). "Tribeca Review: A Suitable Girl". The Young Folks.
  37. Ide, Wendy (April 22, 2017). "'A Suitable Girl': Tribeca Review". Screen Daily.
  38. "Here are the Winners of the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival Juried Awards". Tribeca Film Festival.
  39. "A Suitable Girl (2017) – Awards". IMDb.
  40. Sadhvani, Namrata (October 24, 2018). "VIDEO: Award Winning Documentary A Suitable Girl Explores the Different Facets of Marriage". Momspresso.

A Suitable Girl on IMDb

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