Girls Will Be Girls

Writer and Director: Shuchi Talati

With Girls Will Be Girls writer/director Shuchi Talati takes an unconventional approach to a coming-of-age story. The poster highlights the mildly salacious scene of the lead actor practising kissing on her arm while taking a shower. The opening atmosphere is repressive, the credits roll over martial sounds of barked orders and marching feet. It is a surprise, therefore, to find the scene is set in a mix-gendered Himalayan boarding school, albeit one that is deeply socially conservative.

Teenager Mira (Preeti Panigrahi) symbolises change being selected as the first female Head Prefect. She takes her role seriously not only monitoring pupils, but demanding teachers punish boys who are ‘upskirting’ girls as they walk upstairs- an action which has consequences later in the plot. Mira is, inevitably, perceived as a ‘good’ girl- called upon to demonstrate to the class the acceptable skirt length to be worn by pupils.

Mira seems emotionally younger than her sixteen years. Although she has started to shave her legs and masturbate, she still takes a toy doll to bed. Mira’s approach to maturing is typical of her studious attitude to life- she coolly researches sexual positions on the internet. Nevertheless, Mira’s instinct is to defer to authority, stepping aside when her mother intrudes into a dance to demonstrate the right moves.

Mira becomes attracted to 18-year-old Sri (Kesav Binoy Kiron) who has transferred from a school in Hong Kong. Sri appreciates, to spend time with Mira, he needs to charm her mother, Anila (Kani Kusruti). But this has unexpected consequences as Anila becomes unusually attentive to her guest to the extent it begins to seem like Mira might have a love rival rather than someone trying to safeguard her virtue. The romantic triangle exacerbates the confused feelings Mira has about her mother- once she feared Anila but now, Mira claims, she just can’t stand her.

Both Preeti Panigrahi and Kesav Binoy Kiron are new to film acting and director Talati secures outstanding performances which subtly suggest the young lovers may not be compatible. Kesav Binoy Kiron has a wolfish smile, which he uses to devastating effect, but his main attribute is an easy confidence. Sri might not be a predator, but he is certainly manipulative, in a key scene when the young lovers are caught dancing instead of studying Sri casually invites Mira’s mother to join in and show off her dance moves. There is a possible hidden motivation for Sri’s behaviour- he confesses to having been a ‘mama’s boy’ and to have been cured of this tendency by traumatically witnessing his mother naked.

Preeti Panigrahi balances Mira’s inexperience with her outstanding intelligence. Physically the actor is shorter than almost anyone else in the film which adds to the suggestion of youth but Panigrahi drives home Mira’s analytical nature, reluctantly perceiving her boyfriend, despite his protestations, is more sexually experienced and may, therefore, be exploiting her innocence.

Mira’s father Harish (Jitin Gulati) is defined more by his absence than his presence, popping up to hand out housekeeping or at school parents’ night. As the relationship between the parents is underdeveloped it falls to Kani Kusruti to suggest Anila’s unfulfilled home life which drives her to make unwise moves on her daughter’s boyfriend. Kusruti reminisces about Anila’s wild years which seem a long time ago and probably not all that wild. Anila crosses a moral line, but Kusruti makes her actions understandable.

Director Talati is more comfortable with exploring relationships and motivations than drama so the crisis which pushes Mira to realise she is out of her depth and needs her mother’s help is the least satisfactory part of the film. The sudden shift in the school from repression to Lord of the Flies style anarchy feels contrived. The conclusion is, however, achingly bittersweet with a lovely sense of reconciliation between daughter and mother.

Girls will be Girlswill be released in UK & Irish cinemas 20 September.