Nobody asked for my review- Laapata Ladies

There are a few movies that come along once in a while and really sweep you off your feet. "Laapata Ladies" (2023) is one of them. An absolute gem directed by Kiran Rao and produced by Aamir Khan films, this movie is easily one of my favorites from this year.

Heads up, there may be spoilers ahead!

Set in 2001 in India, this story revolves around two girls (Ladies, if you will) who get caught in an accidental swap and embark on a journey of self discovery.

The movie starts with Deepak and his wife, Phool who board a train to go to his family's house. Phool wears her traditional lehenga and covers herself with the veil, as married women are not supposed to show their faces to non- family members.

The day they board the train is considered very auspicious; hence, it is crowded with other brides and grooms (all married on the auspicious day), going to their respective houses. At night, when they reach the station, Deepak in a hurry, takes Phool's hand and exits the train to reach his village. Upon their arrival, Deepak's mother asks the bride to pull up her veil for the Puja only to realize that the girl is not Phool, but someone else named Pushpa/Jaya.

Chaos ensues as Deepak realizes he has lost his wife and brought someone else home. Police intervene, and slowly what starts as a simple case of accident swap turns out to be something more.
Deepak's love and endearing fight to find Phool, Phool's newfound view of the external world which she had never seen, and Jaya's determination to do something with her life other than just being a wife make for a story that will make you well up, smile and root for them.

Nitanshi Goel as Phool, Sparsh Srivastav as Deepak, and Pratibha Ranta as Jaya/Pushpa are so genuine and brilliant in their roles ,standing out with their acting skills. For real though, Chhaya Kadam as Manju Maai deserves the highest praise for her acting chops and wisdom notes. Ravi Kishan as guthka-chewing SI Shyam Manohar is equally brilliant. Special props to Kiran Rao for making this film.

Laapata Ladies is heartwarming, funny with its laugh-out-loud escapades, laced with a lot of simple and wise thoughts, keeps you hooked throughout, and is an important film that needs to be watched.

It delves into the layers of patriarchy and sends the message of women's empowerment in an interesting way without being too preachy. Maybe that's why it's such a loved film.

There's so much I want to tell you about this movie but I don't want to be a spoilsport, hehe :)

It's best if you watch it yourself and experience this.

So go, watch it now only on Netflix.

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Image credits- ScoopWhoop, Google.