2 States

Krish is Punjabi, Ananya is Tamil. They meet at a business school in Ahmedabad and fall in love. They want to marry, which in India requires the consent of both families, and the two families cannot stand each other. Rather than convincing each other, the couple sets about convincing their parents. Abhishek Varman directs, in his first film. Arjun Kapoor plays Krish and Alia Bhatt plays Ananya, with Amrita Singh and Revathi as their mothers. The source is Chetan Bhagat's novel, which he wrote out of his own marriage. The interesting move is relocating the conflict. Family opposition in Indian cinema is usually built on class or religion; here it is region, language and cultural habit. Both sides are Hindu and middle class, and they judge each other on food, music, wedding custom and manner of speech. The narrative uses that difference as comedy without taking a side; both families end up ridiculous and the film vindicates neither. The best passages are the ones where the families meet. The weakest is how quickly the father's story resolves at the end. Who it is for: viewers who like Bollywood romantic comedy and stories built on India's regional differences. Who it is not for: the template is familiar and it runs long, and the cultural types get coarse in places.