'A Suitable Boy' -The visual treatment seems authentic, the accent doesn't

The trailer of the highly awaited BBC One series A Suitable Boy dropped recently and it may not meet your expectations.

Directed by award-winning filmmaker Mira Nair, A Suitable Boy is based on the 1993 novel by author Vikram Seth, which revolves around a mother’s efforts to find a suitable match for her daughter.

What’s good:

The warm tones and traditional palette shot by the still river beautifully captures the essence of post-independent India. The visual treatment of the series works flawlessly.

The film follows the stories of four families and touches upon various themes that may be considered taboo. Once such story is of Maan Kapoor (Ishaan Khatter) and Saeeda Bai (Tabu) that is forbidden due to their age gap. Khatter shines in every frame and Tabu is majestic even in the little screen-time she has in the trailer.

What’s not:

The Indian characters speaking English is not an issue at all, but the over-emphasis on the Indian accent and diction seems inauthentic.

Also, the background music lacks originality and doesn’t fit with the theme of the film. Indian Summer by Jai Wolf is more contemporary and associated with an upbeat vlog, using it for A Suitable Boy seems to be misfit.

Lastly, a story of forbidden love due to religion and caste is a jaded subject, at least for the Indian audience.

You can watch the trailer here:

The series also stars Tanya Maniktala, Ram Kapoor, Namit Das, Rasika Dugal, Vijay Varma, Gagan Dev Riar, Danesh Razvi, and Mikhail Sen amongst others.

A Suitable Boy will premiere on BBC One and iPlayer on 26 July, 2020.

Rating Prediction: [4/5]