‘Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui’ movie review: Bollywood grapples with new sexual identities—and how!

Although the freedom to express one’s sexuality has for years been legal in India, mainstream Indian cinema continues to mostly focus on the stereotypical hetero-normative couples who end up getting married and live happily ever after. Directed by Abhishek Kapoor, ‘Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui’ is an unconventional love story between bodybuilder Manvinder Munjal aka Manu (Ayushmann Khurrana) and Zumba teacher Manvi Brar (Vaani Kapoor). The audience can sense a chemistry between the two from the time they first meet and, as anticipated, a passionate and intimate relationship ensues.

Gradually the mere lust and attraction turns into love. However, Manvi’s revelation that she is a trans-woman leads Manu into a state of confusion and denial: how can he have feelings for a ‘man’? Brought up in a typical loud patriarchal Punjabi family and with a government school background, Manu struggles to accept that love transcends gender, norms, bodies and societal validation. Instead of beating around the bush, Kapoor reveals Manvi’s past in the beginning of the film itself which will have different reactions from the audience depending on their view about gender and sexuality. As this is a sensitive subject, the lead actors take great pains to internalize their character roles and display the right emotions.

Appreciably, Manvi’s struggles are shown to continue till the present day; Bollywood rarely centers stories on trans characters in a positive light. Although Brar comes from an economically well-off family, she still struggles to carve a space for herself in the society. With only her father (Kanwaljit Singh), a retired brigadier, accepting her true self, she goes through various hardships and heartbreaks, including getting secluded by her own family, even her mother. This also challenges the set social norms of masculinity. Despite being humiliated by everyone, Manvi continues to put up a strong front and doesn’t need an alpha male figure to save her honor. Vaani’s exceptional acting helps us understand her character’s backstory. It was a bold move on her part to play a trans woman as compared to her arm-candy characters in some of her earlier movies.

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The concept of what is ‘normal’ is also explored through the Munjal family. From Manu falling in love with an ‘original girl’, as his sisters (Tanya Abrol and Sawan Rupowali) put it, to his father (Girish Dhamija) being in an interfaith marriage, the protagonist is excluded from his own story.

Overall, the film genre shifts from comedy to rom-com to drama and finally ends with sports, grappling with various social biases all the way through, which keeps the audience hooked. Never does the story veer off track; it is quite fast-paced and manages to expertly highlight the difficulties faced by trans people. However, the story could be a little more realistic on how people navigate social biases over their gender identities and how they overcome and accept themselves.

Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui is one step towards speaking openly about topics considered ‘taboo’ and also an eye opener for many.

Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui

Who should watch it?

The movie is rated 18+ and so it may not be suitable for the whole family to sit and watch together. Yet for anyone wanting to understand the problems being faced by the LGBTIQA+ community in this part of the world and to explore their own gender and sexual biases, this is a wonderful, refreshing watch. 

Rating: Four stars
Genre: Romance, Action, Drama
Actors: Ayushmann Khurrana, Vaani Kapoor
Director: Abhishek Kapoor
Run time: 116 minutes (2 hours)