Monsoon Wedding (2001)

Director:

Mira Nair

Writer:

Sabrina Dhawan (writer)

Release Date:

12 December 2001 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

The Rain is coming... and so is the Family.

Plot:

A stressed father, a bride-to-be with a secret, a smitten event planner, and relatives from around the world create much ado about the preparations for an arranged marriage in India.

Plot Keywords:

Wedding | Bride | India | Marriage | Groom

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 6 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Naseeruddin Shah	...	Lalit Verma
Lillete Dubey	...	Pimmi Verma
Shefali Shetty	...	Ria Verma
Vijay Raaz	...	Parabatlal Kanhaiyalal 'P.K.' Dubey
Tillotama Shome	...	Alice
Vasundhara Das	...	Aditi Verma
Parvin Dabas	...	Hemant Rai
Kulbhushan Kharbanda	...	C.L. Chadha
Kamini Khanna	...	Shashi Chadha
Rajat Kapoor	...	Tej Puri
Neha Dubey	...	Ayesha Verma
Kemaya Kidwai	...	Aliya Verma
Ishaan Nair	...	Varun Verma
Randeep Hooda	...	Rahul Chadha
Roshan Seth	...	Mohan Rai
Soni Razdan	...	Saroj Rai
Sameer Arya	...	Vikram Mehta
Rahul Vohra	...	Uday Verma
Natasha Rastogi	...	Sona Verma
Vimla Bhushan	...	Veena Verma
Ira Pandey	...	Vijaya Puri
Dibyendu Bhattacharya	...	Lottery
Deepak Kumar Bandhu	...	Tameez-ud-din
Pankaj Jha	...	Yadav
Mohini Mathur	...	Old Mother
Sharda Desoares	...	P.K.Dubey's mother (as Sharda Desohras)
Rumaan Kidwai	...	Jibesh
Sahira Nair	...	Vandana
Urvashi Nair	...	Leena
Ram Kapoor	...	Shelly (as Ram Kapur)
Jas Arora	...	Umang Chadha
Rajiv Gupta	...	Cop 1
Shubro Bhattacharya	...	Cop 2
Rajiv Suri	...	Golfer (as Rajeev Suri)
Vikram Nair	...	Golfer
Rajeev Bal	...	Golfer
Raman Chawla	...	Talk Show Panelist #1
Milan Moudgill	...	Talk Show Panelist #2
Himani Dehlvi	...	Talk Show Panelist #3
Nishi Singh Bhadli	...	Dubbist
Neelu Khanna	...	Talk Show Assistant
Motilal Khare	...	Saree Salesman
Paritosh Sand	...	Jai Chand
Ambar B. Capoor	...	Photographer (as Ambar B Capoor)
Renuka	...	Woman in the Rain
Inderjit B.	...	Foxtrotting Couple
Reena Singh	...	Foxtrotting Couple
Madan Bala Sindhu	...	Featured Punjabi Singer
Rekha	...	Featured Solo Singer
Nilambari Chintamani	...	Tuppa Girl
Gita Chopra	...	Tuppa Girl
Priya Chopra	...	Tuppa Girl
Sabrina Dhawan	...	Tuppa Girl
Rimlu Gyani	...	Tuppa Girl
Mitva Krishen	...	Tuppa Girl
Jyotsana Laroiya	...	Tuppa Girl
Lavanya Prabhu	...	Tuppa Girl
Veetu Mehta	...	Tuppa Girl
Aparna Sarin	...	Tuppa Girl
Chitvan Singh	...	Tuppa Girl
Sonali Singh	...	Tuppa Girl
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mira Nair	...	Voice of Mrs Mehta (uncredited)

Directed by
Mira Nair

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Sabrina Dhawan		writer

Produced by
Robyn Aronstam	....	associate producer
Caroline Baron	....	producer
Shernaz Italia	....	line producer
Caroline Kaplan	....	executive producer
Freny Khodaiji	....	line producer
Mira Nair	....	producer
Jonathan Sehring	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Mychael Danna

Cinematography by
Declan Quinn

Film Editing by
Allyson C. Johnson

Casting by
Uma Da Cunha
Dilip Shankar		(as Dileep Shankar)
Loveleen Tandan

Production Design by
Stephanie Carroll

Art Direction by
Sunil Chabra		(as Sunil Chhabra)

Costume Design by
Arjun Bhasin

Makeup Department
LuAnn Claps	....	hair designer (as Luann Claps)
LuAnn Claps	....	makeup designer (as Luann Claps)
Prakash Maruti Lad	....	makeup artist: Naseeruddin Shah
Samantha Kochar Sapru	....	key hair stylist
Rajesh Setia	....	key makeup artist

Production Management
Jessica Berman	....	production supervisor (as Jessica Huppert Berman)
Iqbal Kidwai	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Monsoon Bissell	....	first assistant director
Anjali Panjabi	....	first assistant director
Kiran Rao	....	second second assistant director
Michael Shea	....	first assistant director
Loveleen Tandan	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Anees	....	art department assistant
Vineet Dewan	....	art department assistant
Laura Ljungkvist	....	illustrator: Trollbäck & Company
Sahira Nair	....	art department assistant
Ayesha Punvani	....	set dresser
Ayesha Sood	....	assistant art director
Robin Thomas	....	property master
David Cooney	....	storyboard artist (uncredited)
Mihir Shah	....	graphic designer (uncredited)

Sound Department
Kevin Banks	....	sound editor
Ted Clark	....	sound re-recordist
Ajae Clearway	....	assistant sound editor
Ryan Collison	....	foley mixer
Dan Fulton	....	apprentice sound editor
Tanay Gajjar	....	sound engineer
U. Shahul Hameed	....	adr engineer: Bombay
Dustin Hudson	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby
Dan Korintus	....	adr editor
Malaika Langa	....	audio post coordinator
Kevin Lee	....	sound editor
Lisa J. Levine	....	adr editor
Henri Morelle	....	sound mixer
Stéphane Morelle	....	boom operator (as Stefan Morelle)
Asheesh Pandya	....	sound assistant
Warren Shaw	....	dialogue editor
Paul P. Soucek	....	sound effects editor
Brian Vancho	....	foley artist
Steven Visscher	....	foley editor
Magdaline Volaitis	....	sound effects editor
Magdaline Volaitis	....	supervising sound editor
Peter Wagonner	....	sound re-recording mixer
Daniel Ward	....	assistant sound editor (as Dan Ward)
Akil Wilson	....	sound intern

Camera and Electrical Department
Maqsood Ali	....	electrician
Maqsood Ali	....	grip
Adam M. Balasaheb	....	electrician
Adam M. Balasaheb	....	grip
Yuvraj Bansode	....	spot boy
Naresh Bedi	....	director of photography: second unit
Balaram Dawande	....	electrician
Balaram Dawande	....	grip
Vijay Jodha	....	assistant to director of photography
Zsolt Kadar	....	first assistant camera
Rasool Khan	....	electrician
Rasool Khan	....	grip
Ashish Maurya	....	still photographer
Sadruddin Jiva Mistry	....	generator operator
Milan Moudgill	....	still photographer
Rajkumar	....	spot boy
Moti Ram	....	spot boy
Kamlesh Sadrani	....	gaffer
Ashok Kumar Sarade	....	electrician
Ashok Kumar Sarade	....	grip
Jennifer Stuart	....	second assistant camera
Baban Ganpath Tambe	....	electrician
Baban Ganpath Tambe	....	grip
Jameel Ahmed Zafari	....	electrician
Jameel Ahmed Zafari	....	grip
Barkhat M. Zaria	....	best boy (as Barkat M. Zaria)
Heather Norton	....	first assistant camera: re-shoots (uncredited)

Casting Department
Barry John	....	casting consultant
Shreya Sawhney	....	extras casting assistant
Vishal Sood	....	extras casting
Revathy Venkatraman	....	casting consultant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Liaqat Ali	....	wardrobe assistant
Sabir Ali	....	wardrobe assistant
Himani Dehlvi	....	wardrobe mistress
Ikrar Hussein	....	tailor
Sujata Sharma	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Devika Bhagat	....	post-production intern
Sarah Bicknell	....	post-production assistant
Barry Alexander Brown	....	editorial consultant
Anna DiNuovo	....	assistant editor (as Anna Dinuovo)
Charlie Huser	....	color timer
Sarah Morton	....	post-production assistant
Michael Yetter	....	negative cutter (uncredited)

Music Department
Ulhas Bapat	....	musician: santoor
Rakesh Chaurasia	....	musician: flute
Mychael Danna	....	music score producer
Sunil Das	....	musician: sitar
V. Selva Ganesh	....	musician: kanjira (as Selva Ganesh)
Paul Intson	....	musician: bass guitar
Allyson C. Johnson	....	music editor
Aruna Narayan Kalle	....	musician: sarangi
Liyaqat Ali Khan	....	musician: sarangi
Ramzan Bachu Khawra	....	musician: dhol
Andrew Lockington	....	conductor
Andrew Lockington	....	orchestrator
Brij Narayan	....	musician: sarod
Sukhwinder Singh	....	playback singer: original song

Transportation Department
Ravinder Malik	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Robyn Aronstam	....	script supervisor
Rohit Bal	....	fashion designer
Dhruv Chawla	....	set production assistant
Jean-François Cornu	....	translator
Varsha Dewan	....	location manager
Emily Gardiner	....	production coordinator
Nasreen Kabir	....	translator
Geeta Kapoor	....	assistant choreographer
Farah Khan	....	choreographer
Islamuddin Khan	....	location assistant
Rumaan Kidwai	....	set production assistant
Neeru Kumar	....	fashion designer
Annie Mathews	....	production coordinator: New Delhi (as Annie M. Mathews)
Jessica Milhollin	....	assistant: Ms. Nair
G.D. Murthi	....	accountant: New Delhi
Vivek Narang	....	fashion designer
Nilesh	....	band coordinator
Aki Nirula	....	fashion designer
Ashwini Parulkar	....	teacher: Iyengar Yoga
Purnima Phansalkar	....	set production assistant
Anup Poddar	....	accounting assistant
Kishan Poruva	....	generator assistant
Sapnis Pradhan	....	generator assistant
Rajesh Pratap	....	fashion designer
Malini Ramani	....	fashion designer
Anureeta Saigal	....	production coordinator: New Delhi
Christa Saredi	....	international sales agent
Ruedi Schick	....	supervisor: Swiss Effects
Manav Sehgal	....	assistant to production manager
Abhinandan Sekhri	....	set production assistant
Rohit Sethi	....	accountant: Mirabai Films
Amit Sharma	....	set production assistant
George Sheanshang	....	legal services
Pervinder Singh	....	location assistant
Prem Singh	....	production runner
Roland Tec	....	production liaison: New York
Suneet Verma	....	fashion designer (as Suneet Varma)
Jens Volkmann	....	digital artists supervisor: Swiss Effects
Bart Walker	....	angel in America
Thomas G. Wallin	....	accountant: New York (as Thomas Wallin)
Andrew Yeo	....	location manager (uncredited)

Thanks
Rich Abel	....	grateful thanks
Deepak Advani	....	grateful thanks
Shammi Ahmed	....	grateful thanks
Lalit Arora	....	grateful thanks
Braden Belmonte	....	grateful thanks
Zarine Bhasin	....	grateful thanks
Bim Bissell	....	grateful thanks
Kristina Boden	....	grateful thanks (as Kris Boden)
Pierre Chevalier	....	grateful thanks: ARTE
David Dawkins	....	grateful thanks
Lydia Dean Pilcher	....	grateful thanks
Dr. I.K. Dhawan	....	grateful thanks
Mrs. I.K. Dhawan	....	grateful thanks
Tigmanshu Dhulia	....	grateful thanks
Ian Galloway	....	grateful thanks
Steve Garfinkel	....	grateful thanks
Nan Goldin	....	grateful thanks
Madan Gopal Singh	....	grateful thanks
Susan Jacobs	....	grateful thanks
Samar Jodha	....	grateful thanks
Jagdish Kapur	....	grateful thanks
Urmilla Kapur	....	grateful thanks
Madhukar Khera	....	grateful thanks
Naina Kidwai	....	grateful thanks
Rashid Kidwai	....	grateful thanks
Daniel Kleinman	....	grateful thanks (as Dan Kleinman)
Patrick Lindenmaier	....	grateful thanks
Mahmood Mamdani	....	grateful thanks
Paola Manfredi	....	grateful thanks
Rakesh Mehra	....	grateful thanks
Shubha Mudgal	....	grateful thanks
Jean-Paul Mugel	....	grateful thanks
Amrit Nair	....	grateful thanks
Gautam Nair	....	grateful thanks
Praveen Nair	....	grateful thanks
Shefali Nair	....	grateful thanks
Vikram Nair	....	grateful thanks
Vivek Narang	....	grateful thanks
Bill Nisselson	....	grateful thanks
Heather Norton	....	grateful thanks
Nicholas Page	....	grateful thanks
Preeti Paul	....	grateful thanks
Priya Paul	....	grateful thanks
Shirin Paul	....	grateful thanks
Jerry Poynton	....	grateful thanks (as Jerome Poynton)
Gajraj Rao	....	grateful thanks
Sonjoy Roy	....	grateful thanks
Ruedi Schick	....	grateful thanks
Gv Sethi	....	grateful thanks
Chanda Singh	....	grateful thanks
Pia Singh	....	grateful thanks
Abderrahmane Sissako	....	grateful thanks (as Abderrehmane Sissako)
Nuria Sitja	....	grateful thanks
Sooni Taraporevala	....	grateful thanks
Pierre Tucat	....	grateful thanks
Dr. Pankaj Vohra	....	grateful thanks
Dr. S.K. Vohra	....	grateful thanks
Riyad Wadia	....	grateful thanks
Irwin Young	....	grateful thanks

Production Companies

• IFC Productions
• Mirabai Films
• Keyfilms Roma (as Key Films)
• Pandora Filmproduktion (as Pandora Films)
• Paradis Films
• Baron Pictures (II) (uncredited)
• Delhi Dot Com (uncredited)

Distributors

• Arti Film (2003) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF) (2002) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Criterion Collection, The (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2009) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-Ray)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD) (retail)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Europa Filmes (Brazil) (DVD)
• Europa Filmes (Brazil) (VHS)
• Focus Features (2004) (USA) (all media)
• Gativideo (Argentina) (DVD)
• Gativideo (Argentina) (VHS)
• Keyfilms Roma
• Madman Entertainment (2003) (Australia) (DVD)
• Movie Star (2002) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Océan Films
• Paradise Group (2001) (Russia) (all media)
• Prokino Filmverleih (Germany)
• Telexcel (Argentina)
• USA Films (2002) (USA) (all media)
• Universal Studios Home Video (2003) (USA) (video)
• Vértigo Films (Spain)
• World Wide Cinema (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD) (VHS) (rental)
• iDream Productions (2001) (India) (all media)

Other Companies

• ARRI Lighting Rental  lighting equipment (as ARRI Lighting Rental)
• Abel Cine Tech  camera equipment
• Ava Music Studio, Andheri West  score recording studio: Mumbai
• Bakshi Associates  catering
• CMM Studios  re-recording facilities: Mumbai
• D.R. Reiff & Associates  insurance: United States
• DLF Golf Club  grateful thanks
• Du Art Film and Video  dailies (as Duart Film and Video)
• Eastman Kodak Company  film stock supplied by
• Good Earth Studio  grateful thanks (as Good Earth)
• India Habitat Centre, New Delhi  grateful thanks
• Jass Jeweller  grateful thanks
• LVT - Laser Subtitling  subtitles
• Milan Records  soundtrack published by (uncredited)
• New Variety Tent  grateful thanks
• Noëlle Penraat  negative matching
• Orfeo Films International  international sales agency
• Planet 10 Post  post-production sound services (as Planet 10 Post)
• Silhouette Beauty Parlor  grateful thanks
• Sound One Corporation  re-recording facility: New York
• Swiss Effects  color timing
• Swiss Effects  opticals
• The Oberoi Hotel, New Delhi  grateful thanks
• The Radisson Hotel, New Delhi  grateful thanks
• The Sun-N-Sand Hotel, Mumbai  grateful thanks
• Trollback & Company  title design (as Trollbäck & Company)
• Zee Telefilms  "Khana Khazana" footage courtesy of

Also Known As:

Le mariage des moussons (France)
Monsoon wedding - Matrimonio indiano (Italy)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, including some sex related dialogue.

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

India | USA | France | Italy | Germany

Language:

English | Hindi | Punjabi | Urdu

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-7 | Iceland:L | Malaysia:18SX (uncut) | Malaysia:U (cut) | Hungary:14 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (Ontario - 2007) | India:A | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:Livre | France:U | Germany:o.Al. | Italy:T | Peru:14 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

New Delhi, Delhi, India

Company:

IFC Productions

Trivia:

The movie won the Golden Lion, the highest prize at the Venice Film Festival 2001. Mira Nair was the second Indian (after Satyajit Ray for Aparajito (1956)).

Goofs:

Continuity: When the maid drops the glasses, they shatter, but when she picks them up again, they look whole.

Quotes:

Rahul Chadha: I just fell from grace.
Saroj Rai: My darling, you have to be standing up in order to be able to fall. I mean, if you keep sitting on your ass, nothing's gonna happen. "Only brave warriors fall off their horses in battle. How can kneeling cowards know what a fall is?" Listen sweetheart, the main thing is, you have to fight the battle.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Decade Under the Influence (2003)

Soundtrack:

Aj Mera Jee Kardaa

An absolutely irresistible triumph for all involved

I've seen a lot of great films recently, but this has to be one of the best, one of the upper crust, one of the elite. Inspired by Thomas Vinterberg's 'Festen' (1998) and Robert Altman's 'A Wedding' (1978), this massive ensemble drama goes through the preparation, planning and execution of a wedding at the height of New Delhi's rainy season in touching, hilarious and exciting fashion. Even if the plots may occasionally get a bit melodramatic for some viewers, there's a welter of compensatory pleasures.

The gorgeous soundtrack showcases Indian music of all stripes - pop, folk, dance, you name it. The dance sequences are exuberantly wonderful. The digital cinematography makes the abundance of primary-coloured clothes, tents and plants glow. The central romance pushes itself to the front of the pack of proudly unironic modern romances. The lead actress, Vasundhara Das, is one of the most beautiful women I've laid eyes on recently. Must I go on?

Apparently, I must. I don't know how many times I'm going to have to tell people that Mira Nair is one of the best directors in the world today. She elevates a web of superior soap opera plots to an incisive, brilliant portrayal of India as a country struggling between its traditional roots and modernising influences, and never loses sight of the human dimension of her story either. Dealing with a potentially problematic subplot about child abuse seems no more difficult to her than staging a comic sequence with the contractors hired to raise and decorate the tent.

The whole film can be best summed up by a line from one of its most touching scenes, as stern patriarch Nasseruddin Shah looks at his sleeping daughter and niece and says he has "more love for them than I can bear." Fortunately, a wider audience is about to see precisely why Nair is so brilliant with her forthcoming adaptation of 'Vanity Fair' (2004). The poster alone hints at a fascinating mix of Indian and English styles. She'll have to go a long way to top this film, of course. But won't it be fun to see her try?