Pravesh Kumar’s British Indian romantic comedy follows newlywed Simmy (Rameet Rauli) in her attempts to navigate her new family, Britain and being deserted by her new husband Raj (Simon Rivers). Simmy has travelled to the UK from India for this marriage, and as a result only knows a ‘Little English,’ as referenced by the film’s title. While the film features the classic rom com tropes, as Simmy falls for her husband’s younger brother Harry (Viraj Juneja), what stuck out to me more was the macro divide between Britain and India, as characterised by the micro divide between the India-born Simmy and her new British Indian family. To me the film highlights the clashes and prejudices within the Indian community itself, providing an interesting cross section of what it means to be British and Indian, and fundamentally asks if we can be both.
Simmy is very much the heart of the film, and we experience the story through her eyes. In British television, it is more common to see subdued, downtrodden Indian women who are controlled abusively by those around them, Nish’s control of Suki in ‘EastEnders’ comes to mind. Like many Bollywood heroines before her, such as Simran from ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’, Simmy manages to embody stereotypical female roles, like the dutiful daughter, but also subverts them at the same time, and fights to stand up for what she believes in.
We see Simmy obey her new family; she serves drinks to guests, much like the servants she had in India and takes the brunt of her mother and sister in law’s anger. While she displays passivity in these incidences, this does not define her and is explained by her traditional background. While she respects her elders, she does not allow this to drown out her own voice, and although she is at times passive she also displays a great deal of activeness. Simmy is largely left to her own devices in her new home, and during this time she vows to find her husband and does so by stealing Bobby’s phone. She is also proactive enough to teach herself English, recognising, with Bobby’s help, that this will be the key to her freedom. Simmy manages to be respectful to others, and respectful to herself by still retaining her own agency and not compromising her own feelings and wants.
Simmy’s predicament highlights the naivete exhibited by Indians who live in Britain and Indians who still live in India. Simmy was sent here by her father for a better life, for her marriage which was presumably arranged to improve her prospects. Despite this, she is unhappy and notes that she ‘pines for home.’ Indians in India seem to think that life is better here, and Simmy was probably sold that dream. However, the reality that she finds herself in is somewhat different.
I experienced this when I went to India for the first time in March. I lived in a Gurdwara for a week, and everyone that I encountered seemed quite happy go lucky, away from the rat race of London life. This jovial attitude however did conceal poverty and money troubles, and conversely, those in the Gurdwara were jealous of my life, in the big, exciting city of London. There’s naivete on both sides, and everybody’s expectations probably do not meet reality. The reality of Simmy’s situation probably kills her idealism slightly and increases her isolation. However, her isolation only encourages her to improve her position. She also draws strength from her faith.
Simmy proclaims that she is ‘the daughter of a Sikh. I won’t cry.’ Simmy draws her strength from her faith, which ironically, is something that she and her newfound family share. The similarities between Simmy and her new family are rarely touched upon, instead, their differences take greater precedence, specifically the fact that Simmy has come to Britain from India… but more on that later.
Simmy’s character cannot be discussed without paying attention to her clothing. Simmy’s hair and clothes reflect her journey from isolation to freedom. Initially, she appears in an Indian suit, and wears jewellery. The colours Simmy wears contrast the muted tones of her mother-in-law, and during their first argument, Simmy dons a bright yellow, emphasising her passion. Simmy wears bold, block colours, setting her aside from the muted tones of her mother-in-law and western dress of Mindy, her sister-in-law. The closer Simmy gets to Harry, the closer her colours move to red, a colour traditionally worn by Panjabi brides. Her moving upon the colour scale from yellow to cerise highlights her growing love and passion for Harry, as well as her increasing inner strength. Outside of the house, Simmy adopts western dress as she gradually begins to learn and feel more comfortable in Britain.
She is at her most free with Harry, running around in the fields. The image of two lovers running through the fields is an iconic hark to the Bollywood romance, as referenced in Simmy’s clothes. Simmy wears a white suit, highlighting her innocence, with a red chuhni. It directly references one of Anjali’s signature outfits from ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’… but without the heartbreaking sadness. The whiteness of Simmy’s suit is representative of her feelings for Harry and her freedom. With him she can have a fresh start, a blank canvas. In this scene, her hair is open, again, emphasising her freedom and happiness. This was not always the case though, as whilst in the house, especially in the presence of her mother-in-law, her hair is harshly tied in a bun, or in a plait. It loosens as her attraction to Harry grows. She is at her most free in nature, and with Harry.
Simmy’s mother-in-law, Gurbaksh (Seema Bowri) is not just your stereotypical mother-in-law from hell. Well… she is in part, but not without good reason. It is due to the racism that she experienced when first moving to Britain. Gurbaksh’s character speaks to the idea of intergenerational trauma, as she encourages the same bitterness in Simmy. This, coupled with Simmy’s naivete about Britain means Simmy is at risk of carrying this trauma on.
It is conceivable to think that Gurbaksh did not have much freedom as a young wife, as she does not encourage Simmy’s freedom. Simmy is scapegoated for pretty much everything, being told ‘since the day you set foot in this house, everything has gone wrong.’ They seem to forget that it is not Simmy’s fault that her husband ran away. Simmy’s treatment does not only enforce patriarchal views, but also highlights the sexist attitudes women exhibit towards each other because of it. Gurbaksh’s attitude towards Simmy does not encourage cultural change and cohesion and highlights the divide between Britain and India. Mindy isn’t subjected to the same criticism that Simmy is by Gurbaksh, and in fact joins Gurbaksh in chastising Simmy. Gurbaksh also displays harshness towards Harry and ends up alienating herself from several members of the family. On the surface, Gurbaksh appears as the traditional, Indian, matriarchal figure, an idea she is forced to confront when the question is later asked ‘is anyone happy?’ With the above comment, Gurbaksh is forced to question her lifestyle, and realise that the culture she is upholding is not making everyone else happy. It is her revaluating of this, that allows Raj, Simmy, Harry and Ruth their happy ending.
While Simmy must contend with these traditional values, she must contend with Mindy’s (Goldy Notay) prejudices. This relationship stuck out to me as highlighting the divide between Britain and India, as majority of Mindy’s distrust and insults towards Simmy stem from the fact that Simmy was not born in Britain. This is referenced to by their different clothing, Simmy’s wears Indian dress, Mindy wears western. Mindy refers to Simmy as a ‘village virgin,’ coming from ‘freshie land’ and opines that once Simmy gets her visa, she will be ‘off with (my) husband.’
Mindy forgets that in some way or another, we can all be traced back to ‘freshie land’ and commits the cardinal sin that many Indians do – being prejudiced to their fellow Indians. We see this all the time; a classic example being judging other Indians based on their outdated caste. All of Mindy’s negative views about Simmy stem from the fact that she was not born and bred in Britain. Her attitude is almost colonial, and her distrust of Simmy mirrors Britain’s xenophobia. This is massively ironic considering Mindy’s husband is from India. This however, in her eyes, is ok, as he has become naturalized in Britain, highlighted by his strong command of English in contrast to Simmy’s. Mindy notes that husband Bobby (Ameet Chana) should be grateful though, as without her he would ‘still be dancing in the fields.’ I see nothing wrong with this personally, it seems more jovial than joining the rat race, and dancing in the fields is where we see Simmy at her most happy. Maybe Mindy should try it. Mindy does not care for it, and her delivery of this line shows that she does not respect it. Despite not being white, Mindy’s comment is reminiscent of the white saviour narrative, and the paternalistic view that she has saved Bobby from what she perceives to be mindless nonsense. Mindy is the foil to Simmy, as it seems, Britain is the foil to India.
Mindy only begins to be more sympathetic to Simmy when she realises that they have family difficulties in common. Simmy struggles with her abandonment, and Mindy struggles to conceive. Simmy’s attitude towards Mindy during this time highlights her kindness and family orientated nature and encourages Mindy to realise that you cannot judge someone based on where they are from, you must judge them on their character. It may not quite fit with the conventional definition of racism, but Mindy is unquestionably prejudiced. I found this relationship to be the most fascinating in the film.
Another character that rebels against Gurbaksh is Harry, Simmy’s love interest. He combats the traditional ‘respect your elder’s trope,’ by quipping that ‘respect has to be earned.’ This belief mirrors that of younger generations and is something that Simmy lives by. Simmy tries to earn her family’s respect by teaching herself English. It is unfortunate that no one in the family actively decides to help her. It is particularly unfortunate that no woman in the family tries to help her, but as discussed, they are hampered by their own prejudices.
Harry and Simmy’s initial relationship is somewhat rocky. Despite flying the flag for the younger generations, Harry falls into the Mindy trap of looking down on Simmy because she has moved here from India. Telling her to ‘go back where’ she came from, like Mindy, Harry demonstrates a flippant xenophobic attitude. Harry is the first character to taste Simmy’s fury, and she rightly makes him aware that her poor command of the English language does not equal stupidity. She is also no ‘imported slave.’ She can be a good daughter in law, but she can have her own voice, and fight for what she thinks is right, just as Harry tries to do in his everyday life. Simmy bridges the gap between Britain and India, and the older and younger generations by honouring and trying to improve both. This is no easy feat, and for majority of the film she seems to be fighting a losing battle.
It is interesting that Simmy picks her first fight with Harry. Perhaps it is because he is younger and has a lower standing in the family. Whilst highlighting the difference between the two, the scene also notes that Simmy and Harry are not that different. In this scene Simmy is living by Harry’s rule that age does not command respect. She puts a personal spin on it though, stating that her ability or inability to speak English, or the country that she hails from, should not mean that she is respected any more or any less. Harry does not like being at the receiving end of a variation of his own rule.
As highlighted by the title of the film, language is a prominent theme in the film. It is a common Bollywood trope that speaking English equates wealth, this was touched upon in last year’s ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani.’ Early on, Bobby recognises the importance of learning English, telling Simmy that this will grant her freedom. In her spat with Harry, we hear her throw out some popular culture phrases, such as ‘may the force be with you.’ It is evident that she is learning English through the television. When I went to India, I drew attention for speaking English, and although I was slightly chastised for not knowing Panjabi, my intelligence was not called into question. Simmy deals with the opposite sentiments in this film and is looked down upon for her lack of English. It is interesting that, despite their distain towards her lack of knowledge, no one in the family actively tries to help her.
Despite this divide, Harry and Simmy use language to express their feelings to one another. They use a little English, and a little Indian. By using both they literally form their own love language, and their intimacy comes from their sharing of identities with each other in this form. We see this visually when they paint their names on the wall, in each other’s languages. They both adopt a little bit of each other, championing a cultural cohesion and understanding that, up until this point, we have not really seen in the film. This is also a win for Simmy in her quest to bridge the multitude of divides that she is trying to manage, which is reminiscent of British Indians today. Ultimately, the film teaches us that if we talk and listen to each other, this is possible.
A little side note on names. I wonder if the names Harry and Simmy are a play on ‘When Harry met Sejal,’ which itself is a play on ‘When Harry met Sally.’ If so, nice touch.
‘Little English’ is available on ITVX now!
Thanks for reading!
Khambay's Words, Words, Words 