The Hindi movie Sukhee is directed by Sonal Joshi and stars Shilpa Shetty, Kusha Kapila, Dilnaz Irani, Pavleen Gujral, Amit Sadh, and Chaitannya Choudhry.
Where can you watch Sukhee in the UAE?
Sukhee is currently playing in cinemas across the UAE. You can book your tickets from VOX Cinemas or Novo Cinemas.
Sukhee review
THE GOOD
+ Emotional heft in the second half
+ Relevant message
THE BAD
– Lazy writing
– Simplistic characterization
– Easily content with itself
One of the interesting and curious parts of our lives is what is generally called the ‘middle age’. It is usually taken to be the period when one has just married (the mid to late 20s), and till the period, one’s children go to school. In his or her middle age, an individual makes all the compromises with life in the hope of peace and happiness. The fire and brimstone approach of the college days and the ideals one had sworn to live by all watered down a bit.
But the change that one embraces can also be tough to accept at the core. And that is when the dreaded mid-life crisis hits? It is usually the emotional and intrinsic gap between what one had aspired for and what one is.
It can be even more severe for women, especially those who have to choose the life of an everyday homemaker. Looking after the family and being in charge of the home kitchen can get relentless as it brooks no break. The rough and tumble living can also make people mechanical, and the work of the homemakers can be taken for granted. That is one of the tragedies of everyday living as we know it in the Indian scheme of things.
It is a story that is worth telling as it is emotionally relevant. In that sense, Sukhee, the story of Sukhpreet aka Sukhee (Shilpa Shetty), a 40-something homemaker in Punjab, is relatable. She lives with her husband Guru (Chaitanya Choudhry) and daughter Jassi (Nitanshi Goel), who take for granted. Her sole solace is Dadaji, her father-in-law (Vinod Nagpal).
Stuck in the nonsense of life, her chance to break from the debilitating quotidian routines is her college reunion. The once Delhi lass chooses to attend it and travel to her old city, much to the annoyance of her hubby and daughter. And here she rekindles her old fire of exuberance and enthusiasm with her gang of pals (Kusha Kapila, Dilnaz Irani, Pavleen Gulati).
The reunion is typical. Everyone is now plumper, a bit slow and less than their old ravishing selves (of course, Sukhee continues to remain lissome. If not, she wouldn’t be the heroine). The girls have a blast and also unbare their inner emotions. It is here where the film gets its inner parts working.
But the initial portions are all cliche-ridden, and almost all the characters are painted in black and white. The initial portions are also like English Vinglish, without its lightness of touch. Also, Shilpa is no Sridevi to hold the screen alone. English Vinglish also had a pat ending but made it a triumph of the underdog, making it a bit rousing and satisfying. There is no such redemption here, and the ending seems like a cop-out, especially considering what it was built up to in the preceding segment.
Shilpa Shetty looks fabulous and has a strong role. She is adequate without being memorable or standout. Her friends, Kusha Kapila, Dilnaz Irani, and Pavleen Gulati, all have a lot of fun and radiate energy. But their roles are rather limited. In the reunion, Vikram (Amit Sadh), the doting dad with the looks of a Greek god, is impressive.
The women’s empowerment idea has a lot of heart. But the film does not stretch to make larger points even when possible. The writers — Radhika Anand, Paulomi Dutta, Rupinder Inderjit — play predictable without trying to delve. How Sukhee, who was fiery and free-spirited, willingly becomes a doormat of sorts is not adequately explained. In the event, Sukhee does not deliver it convincingly, even if well-meaning with the right message.
What are the other critics saying about Sukhee?
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Balakumar Kuppuswamy
An engineer-turned-journalist, K Balakumar’s career began in print publications as a sports writer. That also opened doors for other journalistic avenues like films, music, finance, technology and politics, which nobody can escape in India. After 30 yrs in mainstream journalism, now a freelancer for various digital publications.
