A Suitable Girl
94 min. Sarita Khurana & Smriti Mundhra, dist. by Collective Eye, www.collectiveeye.org. 2018. DVD UPC 857670005589. $50; public performance $125; acad. libs. $295. WOMEN'S STUDIES
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The image of a teary-eyed bride as she goes through elaborate wedding preparations and then the ceremony tells the story of this striking documentary. Four years in the making, it follows three young women—Ritu, Dipti, and Amrita—as they face the inevitable showdown when Indian society demands that they become wives. Dipti eagerly accepts this mandate, as she and her family comb through ads, survey online dating sites, and endure awkward face-to-face encounters on the hunt for a husband. Ritu wishes to continue her education and pursue a modern life and career, while Amrita fears losing her identity altogether. In the end, all that the women dreaded and hoped for is realized. Societal pressure on young women and men to marry is stronger than any one individual.
VERDICT A wonderful addition to collections in libraries with a large Indian diaspora population, this film is also appropriate as a conversation catalyst for women's studies, sociology, feminism, and modern Indian curricula.
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