The Lowdown on High Society Weddings

Gitika Naik, Class of 2021.

Just last month, Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti delivered, what was quickly touted as, one of the best recent releases with Gully Boy. However, this talented twosome was not done showing off their directorial prowess because on International Women’s Day (8th March), they were back with another amazing project: Made in Heaven. The latest Indian Amazon Original follows the life of two wedding planners, Tara Khanna (Sobhita Dhulipala) and Karan Mehra (Arjun Mathur), in Delhi. They join the uber-elites of South Delhi in holy matrimony while being fearless, cunning, selfless and, what is arguably their USP, good at handling tantrums.

Tara Khanna is a “rags to riches story” herself, having risen from humble beginnings by marrying a rich industrialist, Adil Khanna (Jim Sarbh). She now co-owns Made in Heaven, dresses fabulously, battles everyday sexism and comes up with street-smart solutions for whacky rich people “first-world” problems. The one problem she can’t solve though, her cheating husband. Dhulipala essays this almost stoic character, battling between contrasting identities, brilliantly by using her eyes to portray every emotion. Karan Mehra also belongs to a well-off Delhi family, he tries to find salvation in Made in Heaven after the recent failure of his club. Being a gay man who’s buried under debt is not at all easy and he is always one step away from being beaten up or going to jail. The other two main employees of Made in Heaven are Jazz (Shivani Raghuvanshi) and Kabir (Shashank Arora). Jazz is your typical starry-eyed girl who has big dreams. Kabir is a cameraman who harbours an intense hatred for all things mainstream, he eloquently monologues the moral of each episode.

The 9-episode series boasts of a stellar cast with Shobhita Dhulipala, Arjun Mathur, Jim Sarbh and Kalki Kochelin playing the leads. Shashank Arora and Shivani Raghuvanshi, both of Titli fame, make a great supporting cast. The show also has an amazing guest cast like Vikrant Massey, Shwetha Tripathi, Pulkit Samrat, Deepti Naval and many more who leave their mark on the characters they play. Here’s the lowdown on the good, the bad, and the worst of the show, or should I say the heaven, the purgatory, and the hell.

The Heaven:

This show gets a lot of things right. The storyline is well structured and each episode tackles a new social issue-ranging from the stigma around older people getting married to the powerful getting away with crimes. But what truly steals the show are the characters. Each character is beautifully created keeping in mind all the complexities of human personality and nature. The characters explore the depth of the human psyche and most fall into that all too familiar grey area. Their motives and inclinations are explored in a realistic manner which makes them all the more relatable. They leave you hating them in one episode and rooting for them in the next. Kudos to the stellar cast for the way they have brought the narrative to life! The show is also not afraid to get down and dirty on high society weddings. It peels back the curtain of glamour and opulence to reveal the hypocrisy, the regressive mindset, and the ugliness that plagues the one-percenters of Delhi.

The Purgatory:

The show does not have a happy ending, it ends on a rather semi-hopeful note. While the ending is heartfelt because it showcases one of the best examples of the wonderful relationship that Tara and Karan share, it is also melancholic because the protagonists personal and professional lives are unbalanced and in disarray. Just like purgatory, this uncertain ending feels like a temporary punishment before the hallowed episodes of Season 2. Personally, I think the show would have been much better if it had ended on a slightly more positive note. It would have left a good last impression on the viewers’ minds. Or maybe, I’m just a sucker for happy endings.

The Hell:

It’s clear that Amazon Prime is obsessed with making Indian cities look glittery, glossy and lucrative. It transfigures Mumbai into pseudo-New York in 4 More Shots Please and now does the same with Delhi. The Delhi that we know and love is transformed into an elegant Metropolis which is a far cry from reality. This is irksome because it takes away from the authenticity of the storyline. The creators are determined to show the darkness behind the glitter of high society, and I think they should extend the same courtesy to Delhi as well.

The show knows exactly what it’s aiming for and delivers it rather well. It does not sway in its focus and that is its greatest strength. The 9 hours are quite thrilling and leave you hooked and reeling. A special mention should also be given to the series’ background score. It manages to capture and elevate the emotions on screen perfectly. So, if you are someone who enjoys rich people problems and (secretly) loves Dynasty, then this show is a perfect way to let your hair down after those harrowing mid-terms. All I know is that I need a wardrobe like Tara, a friendship like Tara and Karan’s and Kabir reflectively narrating every decision that I make in life.

The author is a Staff Writer for the Arts and Culture section of The Edict.