Satnam ‘Sunny’ Sethi (Vikrant Massey) is an aspiring chef and restaurateur who is desperate to get married in order to meet his father Pappi Sethi’s (Rajiv Gupta) condition. The condition is that Sunny will get to open his own restaurant only after he gets married. Unfortunately, finding a bride is difficult for Sunny as he keeps getting rejected by prospective matches, for no apparent reason.
On the other hand, there is Simran ‘Ginny’ Juneja (Yami Gautam), who is also being pressured into getting married by her single mother Shobha Juneja (Ayesha Raza). But Ginny is still in a complicated relationship with her ex-boyfriend Nishant (Suhail Nayyar) who is now her best friend, and she will settle for no less than love marriage.
By chance, Ginny’s mother is also a wedding matchmaker and when Sunny’s father approaches her to find Sunny’s match, she thinks it is a good idea to get Sunny and Ginny hooked. So Sunny, with help from Ginny’s mother, plans to woo Ginny. The story then continues to create confusion and collisions in the lives of everyone involved, with humor, sarcasm and satire thrown into the mix.
The story of Ginny Weds Sunny is as predictable as a Bollywood romantic comedy can be. In fact, most dialogues and plot changes are also predictable. But the slight difference in this one is the execution. With a talented cast of actors and without superfluous larger-than-life sequences, the film directed by Puneet Khanna is a light-hearted rom-com you can watch while you wait for Season 2 of “Mirzapur.” (No, I don’t get paid to do this. Promoting anything with Pankaj Mishra in it is my self-appointed duty.)
Originally intended for theatrical release but postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the film tries to emulate the success of a string of low-budget family movies that have recently done well in the box-office, the likes of “Subh Mangal Saavdhan” and “Bareilly Ki Burfi”. But the key advantage of originality is missing in this one and hence, Ginny Weds Sunny might not create a benchmark for upcoming films with its clichéd screenplay. Still, it does a better job of entertaining folks compared to many big-banner Bollywood releases that are unbearable to watch.
The cast in Ginny Weds Sunny is natural and instantly relatable. The characters are mostly from Punjabi families that speak in a mixed Punjabi-Hindi dialect without going overboard with stereotyping. Despite an unoriginal script, the entire cast performs its roles with earnestness, making the audience believe what they’re watching is something completely new. This is one of those movies where the whole cast executes a well-coordinated performance instead of banking on the main characters.
And when a movie has Punjabi wedding themes to it, there is bound to be some upbeat bhangra music. In this, the film is below average, with none of its soundtracks leaving a mark. The film does feature a rendition of the classic Punjabi song “Sawan Mein Lag Gayi Aag” written and composed by Mika Singh, which is still not one of the best remixes.
Who should watch it?
So the low-budget Ginny Weds Sunny fails you in some parts and wins you over in others. If you’re looking for some light entertainment without many expectations, this one is for you.
Rating: 2.5 stars
Genre: Romantic comedy
Director: Puneet Khanna
Cast: Yami Gautam, Vikrant Massey
Run time: 2hrs 5mins
