By Syed Hasan Kazmi
From the start till the end, Sui Dhaaga is a predictable film. It is a film with no surprises, no conflict and yet it has some heartfelt moments that make the audiences feel for the characters.
To me, Sui Dhaaga, is a non-expressive romantic film: the romance is obvious, but it is not explicit and you have to look for it. It takes you very close to a real-life husband and wife, living in conservative India, where they share everything but still don’t get to say the magical word because life doesn’t let them. We seldom get to see couples’ romantic stories being told in sub-continent and Sui Dhaaga is a on the rare.
Set in a suburban area of India, Mamta (Anushka Sharma) and Mauji (Varun Dhawan) are living a loveless life where Mamta is trapped with her daily household tasks, leaving her with no time for her husband and the lack of spark between the couple is pretty evident.
Mauji, on the other hand, sells sewing machines in a shop, and is often humiliated by his boss and his son. Soon he gets tired of the relentless degradation and decides to quit.
Encouraged by his wife, Mauji decides to start his work as a tailor, an occupation forbidden by his father. As a result, tensions mount in the family leading to conflict and heated discussions. However, the couple somehow manages to keep their dream alive and find the right direction. Along the way, they face several hardships and accept a job in a factory, where the company owners take the credit for their hard work, bringing them back to where they started. From there, begins the story of an ordinary couple fight for their dreams.
Sui Dhaaga’s script is weak, in fact it’s weaker than the storyline, lacking powerful dialogues and catchy one liners to the point that the story begins to feel heavy on the heart. It makes you feel emotional, rather too often. Moreso, the ‘Made in India’ slogan was only touched upon and not explored properly.
Director Sharat Katariya does take few cinematic liberties and the film has some moments which connect it to the real world. Katariya successfully establishes his characters and their problems in first half, with the help of rare humour. As the film progress and the lives of the protagonists get tough, the film’s songs and background score lend somberness to the story. Meanwhile, the second half of the film is simple and easy. As Mauji struggles to establish his work, there is no mention of his natural talent in the field.
Nonetheless, Sui Dhaaga has some very strong performances and moments and Varun and Anushka deserve all the applause for making the film a one-time watch.
Towards the end, the film did go slightly overboard with its optimism in pure Bollywood style but it still managed to expose the nonexistence opportunities for the underprivileged in the ruthless fashion world.
The film is doing better than expected at the box office and has collected over 900 million in one week.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
