Girls Will Be Girls: Film Review
I knew nothing about the Indian coming-of-age film Girls Will Be Girls but it ended up being one of my favourites at Sundance London.
This drama follows 16-year-old Mira (Preeti Panigrahi), the head prefect at a strict boarding school in the Himalayas. Her top grades and laser focus on her studies are derailed by the arrival of the new boy Sri (Kesav Binoy Kiron). They date in secret, with him going around her house on the pretence of studying.
Mira can’t stand her mother Anila (Kani Kusruti) because she’s so overbearing. Anila’s husband is away all the time and she has no job so all she has to do is keep the home and focus on Mira. She gets weirdly involved in Mira’s relationship and takes an unusual level of interest in Sri.
Newcomer Panigrahi is such a natural, captivating lead. She is in virtually every scene in this film and she makes it look effortless, which is remarkable considering this is her feature film debut. I really cared for Mira and became truly engrossed by the tense dynamic between her and her mum.
The enigmatic Anila is so intriguing because you don’t know what she’s thinking or exactly what she wants. She clearly needs the attention – even if it means stealing it from her daughter – but why? Does she fancy Sri or is she simply jealous of Mira? Anila remains ambiguous throughout the film and makes some truly wild decisions. I felt on edge because I just don’t know what she was going to do next!
Female sexuality, particularly with teenage girls, is quite taboo in India so it naturally hasn’t been depicted on film very much. Writer-director Shuchi Talati handles these scenes with so much care and respect for her actors. There are plenty of intimate scenes but you don’t see anything because it focuses on the emotion rather than the acts themselves. There is no male gaze and Mira’s sexuality is depicted as normal instead of shameful, which is so important.
Girls Will Be Girls is a relatable and surprisingly funny coming-of-age film. Highly recommend.
In cinemas from Friday 20th September