Writers Radhika and comic Prashasti on how Thank You for Coming’s starting point was what if Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’s Raj-Simran were sexually incompatible
A still from the film
Like most of us, producer Rhea Kapoor, writer Radhika Anand and comic-turned-writer Prashasti Singh grew up adoring Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995). But in their first meeting, the writers were posed with a simple question by Kapoor: “Simran and Raj live happily ever after. Why has no one asked Simran if he could please her in bed?” That question resulted in Thank You for Coming. The Bhumi Pednekar-starrer revolves around a woman who has never experienced an orgasm. Anand says the film stems from her and her friends’ experiences. “Every relationship leaves an impact on you, and every time something doesn’t work out, you go into self-doubt. We delve into these subjects,” says Anand.
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Radhika Anand and Prashasti Singh
After exploring these themes in her stand-up sets, Singh brought her unique flavour to her maiden film. The idea behind the female buddy comedy, she says, was to open a dialogue about women’s desires in the modern dating world. “We spoke to a lot of women, and it [came to light] that men make us feel that the flaws lie in us. Men feel no shame, but women have been wired to feel bad if they demand pleasure. The ‘good girls don’t do this’ belief is a problem. While writing the film, we realised that no matter which social strata we belong to, all women feel this inadequacy,” she rues.
Thank You for Coming also sheds light on the pressures of patriarchy on men. Anand explains, “The film has more to do with men. They are conditioned into behaving a certain way—be it not showing their vulnerabilities, or being macho. Because of our conditioning, how we see ourselves in relationships has a lot to do with how men make us feel. Films like these are important in changing the lens and reassessing our life choices.”
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