Sweet and spicy, INDIA SWEETS & SPICES is a surprisingly smart little offering, a rom com in the vein of Crazy Rich Asians, but more endearing.
Written and directed by Geeta Malik, INDIA SWEETS & SPICES is set in Ruby Hill, New Jersey, a posh suburban enclave of well to do Indians. Alia Kapur (Sophia Ali) is returning to the family home for summer break after a year at UCLA, and is thrown headlong back into the lavish Saturday-night dinner parties and gossiping “aunties” of her community.
While shopping for one of these parties, Alia meets Varun (Rish Shah), the son of local shopkeepers and impulsively invites him and his parents to her mother’s upcoming extravagant soiree. In the process, she accidentally
uncovers a pair of family secrets that will have consequences for everyone involved.
Turns out, Alia’s straight- laced mother Sheila (Manisha Koirala) has a shared history with Varun’s mom Bhairavi (Deepti Gupta) that she refuses to discuss with her daughter, while her father Ranjit (Adil Hussain) is having a fling with a neighbour.
As Alia struggles to reconcile her image of her parents with these new revelations, she is also juggling her fledgling romance with Varun and is compelled to make a single bold gesture that literally brings things to a head.
INDIA SWEETS & SPICES starts inconspicuously but evolves then erupts into multi layered and multi faceted plot lines and observations.
Tried and true conflicts of tradition versus modern mores, of class distinctions and double standards keep the comedy and the drama dancing in two step all the way.
The screenplay is solid and is polished by a damned attractive cast that give cliché caché. The posh pair of prim and proper parents are brilliantly contrasted by Alia’s outlier approach and a brilliant illustration of how by bestowing a good education on their kids, the children then rebel and reject pernicious patterns of custom.
INDIA SWEETS & SPICES has all the colour and energy of a Bollywood show, an unabashed entertainment bejewelled with subtle intricacies about gender, class and privilege. It’s a tasty treat with nourishing benefits.
View trailer here
