Punekar's documentary to be screened at Mumbai film fest

A documentary film, which takes a light-hearted look at the concept of arranged marriages, will be screened in the ‘Real Reel Category' at the 15th Mumbai Film Festival today. Produced, directed and edited by Punekar Rohena Gera, the 84-odd minutes film, What's Love Got To Do With It? is a humour-driven take on Indian arranged marriages.u00a0

Light-hearted: Filmmaker Rohena Gera (inset) ; a scene from the documentary What's Love Got to Do With It?

With its diverse theme, the documentary enters the inner spaces of the Indian family set-up and interweaves the stories of eight unlikely arranged marriage candidates. An intimate look at the human quest for love and happiness, the film uses arranged marriages as a prism to portray and critique society, while simultaneously bringing into question the very idea of love as the basis for marriage.u00a0

Talking about the film, Gera said, "It is an exciting fun documentary on urban Indian marriages that portrays how seemingly westernised individuals are struggling with the expectations of a traditional and cultured society. The film explores whether love is a stable enough foundation to sustain a marriage over for 10 to 20 years.

It also explores if arranged marriages hold bright choices with all practical aspects well thought about beforehand. My film uses humour to explore why
well-travelled urban Indians, who have freedom and privilege are choosing arranged marriages over love. As the documentary was not supposed to be scripted, we shot it in between two real-life weddings.

What happens if the marriages turn out to be humorous but people are not aware of the funny factor? I have tried to show the interesting tale of the whole wedding ceremonial and the occurrence of interesting events."u00a0The documentary has been widely shot in the city and Mumbai in the span of two years. Real-life weddings were prominently part of the filming of the documentary.

Gera said she has received good vibes from the audiences so far, and is hoping to screen the film at other festivals too. She believes that the film will strike a chord with the urban Indian audience as well as the international audience, which is beginning to understand the concept of arranged marriages.

What is Real Reel?
The Real Reel section of the Mumbai Film Festival features many award-winning and critically acclaimed feature-length documentaries, which convey strong opinions on issues concerning social lives, human nature and many other topics. u00a0