Indian cinema is not known for making feel-good cinema. We have seldom seen films that put a smile on our face by the warmth of its characters, the charm of its leading man, and the effortlessness of its story. Every time we try making a film in the feel-good genre, it ends up being too sappy or preachy. Thankfully, debutant Milind Dhaimade’s Tu Hai Mera Sunday (THMS) checks all the three aforementioned boxes that make for a perfect viewing on a warm, lazy Sunday afternoon.
Arjun, Rashid, Mehernosh, Dominic, and Jayesh are five friends from middle-class families in Bombay. Entangled in their own lives, Sunday is the only time of the week when they leave behind their humdrum lives and indulge in some football. Except, after a recent mishap they lose their regular haunt.
As the gang sets off in search of a place to play football in a city that is bursting off its seams, Dhaimade takes us into the lives of the five friends. Arjun (Barun Sobti), the glue that holds the gang together, is a laidback do-gooder who keeps insisting to the girl he woos that he’s a nice guy. Rashid (Avinash Tiwary) is a womanizer who tries to mend his ways after he befriends a single mother of two, Mehernosh (Nakul Bhalla) is a wiry Parsi with anger simmering inside him over all those things that make him lose his grasp over life. Dominic (Vishal Malhotra), is a hot-tempered Anglo Indian who frustrates his mother to no end but when his more successful brother moves in with his fiancée, it unearths a deep, buried resentment he once had towards him. Jayesh Bhai (Jay Upadhyay) is the older and most successful of the lot, who after having spent several years providing for his family looks to spend his time away from familial responsibilities by playing football.
While the plot is about searching for a place to play football, Dhaimade shows us a bunch of men that try to escape the banalities of life by searching for the missing piece that completes them. The screenplay treats love, friendship, sibling rivalry, and escapism with no frills and it feels refreshing. THMS uses outbursts and monologues to give you more insight into a character.
The women in THMS are portrayed to be independent and dignified. Kavya (Shahana Goswami) is a headstrong woman who takes care of her ailing father (Shiv Subramaniam) and manages a corporate life. She even proposes to the man she loves and assures him that she can take care of her own needs. Rasika Duggal plays a single mother of two children with special needs who faces her troubles with a smile on her face, inspiring. Rama Joshi plays the exasperated Anglo-Indian mother who is trying hard to accept their sons’ life choices, be it the wayward lifestyle of Dominic or the fiancée her older son brings. Maanvi Gagroo with her zest for life lights up Dominic and Deniss’ life and in the process winning their mother’s heart.
The camaraderie among the cast is what makes THMS a lively film, be it among the friends or the romantic leads. What makes the movie work is its simplicity, one of the most grounded and romantic scenes in recent times is because of how it shows a conversation between two people, without any melodrama or any fuss. The actors work so well together that you are left wondering about their backstory, of how did these men from different walks of life meet each other.
Tu Hai Mera Sunday captures the middle-class life in Bombay splendidly, making the city a character on its own. I could taste the vada paav that’s being served, smell the coffee bean that is used as an ice-breaker, and feel the hustle and bustle of the beach. It is probably the sweetest film to have come out of our stables in a long time. Catch it on Netflix.
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