Plots(1)
In a strict boarding school nestled in the Himalayas, 16-year-old Mira discovers desire and romance. But her sexual, rebellious awakening is disrupted by her mother who never got to come of age herself. With precision and sensitivity, first-time feature director Shuchi Talati invites us into the lives of characters she intimately understands and deciphers, allowing us to experience adolescent sexual discovery with all its conflicting emotions. Preeti Panigrahi embodies Mira with nuanced sincerity, her hesitation transforming into confidence when she’s swept up by Kesav Binoy Kiron’s charismatic, wry Sri. Kani Kusruti, meanwhile, gives a brilliant performance as Mira’s cunning mother, Anila, setting up the perfect game of mother-daughter chess as these women descend into a struggle that threatens their affection for each other. Beautifully exploring the origins of empowerment and the limits of trust, Girls Will Be Girls celebrates the freedom of self-acceptance and the solace of female agency, sensuality, and physicality. (Sundance Film Festival)
(more)Reviews (1)
The film’s poster shows the 16-year-old protagonist – the head of her class at school – using her own wrist to practice kissing her first boyfriend in the shower. Most of the film offers similarly subtle intentions and sensitive suggestions as it flows freely without any dramatic twists or tense situations. The story of young love emerging in a setting that is not very favourable for romantic relationships between students (a strict school and strict parents) stands out due to the sweetness of some of the moments when the young couple are getting to know each other and the funny moments in which the protagonists’ plans are spoiled by the girl’s attentive mother. The forbidden fruit has juice only when the characters risk revealing their secret amorous intentions – whenever they are truly alone, they paradoxically do not give vent to their desires with such intensity and suddenly behave more coldly and reservedly despite their more intimate experiences. It repeatedly seems that various twists are coming, but the plot doesn’t follow up on any of them in the end. Some films roll out a sweet, likable and lightweight plot and then wild waves begin to buffet the story. This one just harmlessly splashes around.
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