A Suitable Boy web series is based on Vikram Seth’s 1993 novel which has the same name. A Suitable Boy is a six-part miniseries which is set in 1950-51 and revolves around a bright university student Lata Mehra featuring Tanya Maniktala and her three prospective suitors Kabir Durrani (Danesh Rizvi), Amit Chatterji (Mikhail Sen) and Haresh Khanna (Namit Das).
Lata loves to live in her world which is full of books and friends and has already found a young, dashing and handsome boy to run away with, her Muslim classmate Kabir. There is a melodramatic show at the Mehra household due to her lover’s religion which cannot be accepted and Lata is sent to stay with her brother’s family Arun (Vivek Gomber) in Calcutta.
An arrogant tanker of the king, Raja of Marh played by Manoj Pahwa wants to make a temple next to a mosque and Islamic leaders are not very happy about the same. A silent protest is launched which becomes violent when local police openly fire at the protesters and the tension between these two dominating religions embroils further. Independent India is shown to become a hot seat for communal fights.
On the other hand, we observe that Revenue Minister of India Mahesh Kapoor played by Ram Kapoor is very anxious about his younger son Maan’s (Ishaan Khatter) antics at the Holi party where he has thrown Home Minister of India featuring Vinay Pathak in a makeshift pool in a drunk state.
Another side of the life which keeps this seasoned politician under great stress is the fact that poor peasants are treated very ruthlessly by feudal lords. The senior Kapoor is said to be the messiah of the poor and he also wants to bring a change to the society but there are many hurdles to it. Maan remains unaffected and always searches for thrill in misadventures and pursues a courtesan who is very cunning while dealing with local men.
Saeeda Bai played by Tabu is very shocked when Maan pursues her but he wins her heart with his statements. The Mira Nair’s directorial intertwines the lives of Khannas, Kapoors, Mehras and also Durrani and in between this confusion and chaos, Lata needs to find a boy suitable for her among the three suitors. The other two suitors are a plain John who has a passion for paan and shoemaking named Haresh Khanna. The other one is Meenakshi’s younger poet brother Amit Chatterji.
One suitor has heart, other brains and the third one has both on some level. It is on Lata to decide whom she will be with for her life as all three try to woo her. A Suitable Boy web series is an adaption of the novel which is about 1300 pages long and is one of the lengthiest novels in history which is a milestone for Indian writers during the 90s.
Davies depiction and the idea of India is something not suitable for the Indian audience. Mira Nair’s and Davies’s idea of India seems very unfamiliar to Indians. The characters have many shades to their personalities while some are forgettable but others are effective. All the characters speak English which is not Indian and the culture of the country has not been grabbed properly.
The matters turn worse when Hindi and Urdu are adapted in the form of a dialogue to compensate for the Indian story shown in a foreign language. The conversations in these languages break the flow of the series. The story has a hurried tone as it is presented in a concise form. It would have been interesting to watch unspoken sexual tension between Maan and Nawabzaade Firoz Ali Khan played by Shubham Saraf and understand the plight of a family torn by Partition.
Danesh Razvi is a fellow literature enthusiast and Lata’s first love which is crazy and stupid, pretty and passionate. Razvi easily transforms into the character of a hopeless romantic Kabir. Mikhail Sen is a nature poet and writes about something he is not attached to and tries to do justice to his role and shines in his performance.
Tabu is a delight to watch on screen with her character Saeeda Bai Firozabaadi. The nose pins, big and flowy shararas and a calmness in her character make Saeeda one of the most loved characters. Her chemistry with Ishaan Khatter is twisted and troubled but is a cinematic treat. They are completely drained in love and match well as a couple which cannot be together forever.
Ishaan shows a great range as a rich spoilt brat, passionate partner and a friend who can do anything for protecting Firoz, his Muslim brother against hooligans. Shubham Saraf is a handsome and dashing boy playing Firoz Ali Khan who is filled with royalty. His synchronization with Khatter is very good. Mahira Kakkar and Ram Kapoor play the role of overworked parents very well although Kakkar’s version of Mrs Mehra gets over the top at times.
