Indian-born Shuchi Talati’s debut film is a well-crafted, complex story about the human complexities of an 18-year-old girl, Mira, who is stuck in a strict boarding school morality where female freedom is rare and feminist freedom is never acknowledged.
With power comes responsibility
Mira Kishore (Preeti Panigrahi), an 18-year-old attending grade 12 at a strict boarding school, has been appointed head prefect of the school, a role model for all students. She is the “good girl,” or rather, the images of good were created around her, and she was forced to conform to that personality. As is often the case, the responsibility for “respect” is thrust upon women by society. Mira promises to “protect the ancient Indian culture.”
Source: IMDb
The pressure to be a traditional “good girl” weighs heavily on her. Girls will be Girls is the story of what would happen to her “respect and responsibility” once the fervor of her age begins to erupt as she befriends her charming lover Srinivas (Kesav Binoy Kiron).
During the introductory scene in a pawn lot with beautiful Himalayan foothills as a backdrop, the headmistress introduces Mira by saying that she is the first woman to be a senior in a girls’ hostel. Since we may be seeing this starting in 2024, we may be wondering in what archaic era is this happening? Mira’s story takes place in a time of radios and internet cafés – where knowledge about sex is not as widely accessible as it is now. Production designers Avyakta Kapur and Shaahid Amir’s costume designs are not obviously archaic. Although Anila’s unusual clothing style gives a touch of the past. The aspect of time in “Girls Will Be Girls” is purely contextual.
The curious eagerness and the subtle jealousy
The aspect of time is again reinforced by cinematographer Jih-E Peng, using high quality aesthetic images that do not focus heavily on time or objects that indicate the specific time frame – the usual overused filmmaking technique. Jih-E Peng takes too many close-ups and point-of-view shots. The camera in the face creates a much more intimate connection with the characters. But not in a strange way. And the POV shots are so perfect that they start a critical conversation in your head about the characters’ motives.
Source: IMDb
Mira’s eagerness does not stop at lovingly befriending Sri. She’s desperate to experience everything she can, including sex. She was shocked to know that Sri already knows how to do it properly. There is a slight feeling of discomfort on her face. She takes on the challenge of having sex as a project to be completed. On Sri’s birthday she coldly demands sex, but one day she refuses to fuck him. There’s the rebellious, consenting young – almost underage – for you, in control of her own sexual decisions.
When Srinivas leaves Mira alone to study after ejaculating in his pants after an intense kiss; or when Sri takes a siesta next to Anila; or when Anila demands that Srinivas has to sleep in her bed, the unspoken thoughts of insecurity and attention-seeking mentality of Mira don’t stop in your mind when you see the pictures of Anila and Srivas from Mira’s POV. Making a film that not only speaks to you but also encourages you to have a conversation with your own head is a miracle, achieved through the minimal dialogue that Talati wrote and that dialogue editors Matthieu Choux and Colin Favre- Bull put together.
Men will be men and girls will be girls
“Men will be men” is a highly successful replacement advertising campaign for Seagrams Imperial Blue. It’s so popular that you’ve already started humming the ad’s tune, at least in your head. The advertising campaign was accused the normalization of the male gaze in public spaces and the reinforcement of the stereotype of masculine men as lustful oglers who only care about “standards” of beauty. The title “Girls Will Be Girls” for this feature is no coincidence. It’s a response to pop culture with a positive attitude: girls should be girls.
Source: IMDb
The creepy boys at school take photos of girls in skirts. When Head Prefect Mira confronts this problem with Ms. Bansal (Devika Shahani), she calmly dismisses it by blaming the girls for wearing short skirts. Giving more attention to girls would in turn harm the girls, she says. (They are later suspended.) The climactic scene in which her power as head prefect is destroyed on the day of Teachers’ Day, the day when all senior 12th grade students become teachers of the schools and the head prefect becomes the headmaster. On this day, her classmates – the same suspended boys – also receive almost the same power status as her. The boys see Mira near the patio door – where Mira and Sri may have planned to have sex. The boys start insulting and chasing them. The image of a group of men chasing after a sari-clad young girl is so frightening that the instant images that flashed in my mind were the climax of Lijo Jose Pellissery’s ‘Jallikattu’.
The boys complain to Mrs. Bansal. But despite all the almost true accusations, Anila remains steadfast. She doesn’t say a word to her daughter. She is amazed that the heckling boys weren’t even summoned, but her daughter was questioned morally. This nuanced portrayal of men/boys’ privileges to get away with preserving the “ancient Indian culture” (even if the perpetrators are the men) is a statement that speaks of the culture we have promoted keeps women on the pedestal of guilt.
When the film begins, we are all with Mira. Because she is rebellious, curious and expresses her feminist strength, you feel more connected to her. The further the story progresses, almost like a thriller, the more we realize how complicated the relationship dynamics are. “A Girls Will Be Girls” begins and ends, you are with Anila. You understand the legitimate reasons for how liberal even her conservatism is, which is not really to limit Mira’s feminine freedom, but only to ensure the care of a loving mother.
Girls Will Be Girls is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.