A career woman finds herself unexpectedly pregnant? Snore. Without knowing who the dad is? Seen it. But pregnant with twins, by each of her suitors? Outstanding. Without hyperbole, this is the greatest concept for a romantic comedy in the history of time. Bad Newz then surpasses the excellence of its set-up to ensure that its female lead and her desires are at the center of this silly romantic comedy. It is not revolutionary in its execution, only in how it’s nothing less than a happy and hopeful movie.
Where Bad Newz excels
The entire movie is a flashback, the life story Saloni Bagga (Triptii Dimri) is telling to the actress (Ananya Panday as herself) who will be playing her in a biopic. She is a high-powered chef in Delhi, focused on winning what is not a Michelin but instead a Meraki star, but also a human person incapable of resisting the considerable charms of Akhil (Vicky Kaushal). He’s thoughtful, loves his mother (Sheeba Chadda), very easy to look at, and promises to support her career. Initially their marriage is so successful the bed is broken on their wedding night – yippee! – but Akhil’s overbearing personality and narcissism means things go wrong as quickly. After the divorce Saloni takes herself to the hills of Mussoorie for a new job in a hotel owned by the charming Gurbir (Ammy Virk), determined to win her Meraki star and focus on her career. And it’s all going great until the night she’s sent pictures of Akhil in a club with another woman. She gets super drunk and seduces Gurbir, and on sneaking back to her room, finds an apologetic Akhil in there, hoping to reconcile. Wham, bam.
At no point does the script by Ishita Moitra and Tarun Dudeja judge Saloni for these choices, and at no point does the direction by Anand Tiwari get inappropriate. The sound design by Jayadevan Chakkadath and Anil Radhakrishnan works very hard to keep things cartoonish and light, and Debojeet Ray’s cinematography underlines what a terrific position Saloni actually finds herself in. She has two solvent, handsome men fighting over who’s going to be the better father to her babies! And it’s her choice to have them; in a scene impossible to imagine in current Hollywood, Saloni and her hippie-dippie aunt Maa Corona (Neha Dhupia) explicitly discuss whether an abortion would be better for her career. Getting pregnant by the boss, for once, was a great idea, not that anyone demeans anybody by actually saying that. But Saloni continues to work, the three of them move into a house where Akhil and Gurbir share a bedroom (twin beds, lest you get too excited) and the household chores to minimize her stress, and over time everybody learns what their priorities are.
Mr. Kaushal is quite the movie star, leading the musical numbers with ease, prepared to cry over his mistakes, and generally comporting himself with a puppy-dog physicality that’s playfully charming, only slightly undermined because he knows how attractive it is. Mr. Virk, as the straight man, has a lot less to do other than be the quiet and well-mannered alternative, but he does everything possible with the part. Better still, Ms. Dimri gets to have a great deal of fun, clowning around with her boyfriends while simultaneously refusing to get involved in the masculine hijinks between them. The entire movie is about reinforcing Saloni’s decisions – as a chef, as a parent, and as a person – and the fact there are two men involved only highlights the sexist and dull assumptions a lot of people have about responsibility, love, and parenthood. It’s feminism, but not as we always know it (and certainly not being explicitly labeled as such, but that’s where criticism adds value).
For what is, again, a silly comedy, there’s a frankness here about the human heart – and other human needs – which has virtually disappeared from American movies. Just look at Twisters, which stars Glen Powell, the current Hollywood sex on legs, in which absolutely nobody even kisses, much less anything else. And it all builds to a gleefully happy ending, in which everybody gets what they want. Sometimes, being happy and hopeful is more revolutionary than being realistic. Truly, who could ask for anything more?
One last thing: there are drawings of sperm on the poster, which is somehow forthright instead of crass. Like I said: outstanding.
Bad Newz is now playing in limited theaters.
Learn more about the film, including how to get tickets, at the Leo Media Collective Instagram site.
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