Girls Will be Girls review: Shuchi Talati portrays a young girl’s conflicts with finesse

Mira Kishore in Girls Will be Girls went to the same school that most of us did — one that rewards ‘perfection’, discourages interactions between boys and girls, and prescribes longer uniforms for girls as a solution to boys looking up their skirts. But she also had the mother that most of us didn’t — one that encourages her to pick a short skort, lies to the boy’s hostel warden to authorise outings for Mira’s male friend, and doesn’t think it odd to sleep in the same bed as the said male friend.

The film, written and directed by Shuchi Talati, revolves around Mira (Preeti Panigrahi), a class 12 student in a residential school in the Himalayas. She is the model student who aims and gets cent percent in her exams, is in the good books of all her teachers, and is the first girl to become head prefect at her school. 

To her mother Anila (Kani Kusruti), however, Mira is the brilliant yet difficult child who doesn’t easily confide in her. Despite all the ‘freedoms’ she allows, Anila is the over-protective mother who shifts from Haridwar to their house near the school during exams to help Mira study. She also crosses boundaries to snoop into her daughter’s life. Well, I suppose it is arguable how much nosiness is not nosiness in parent-child relationships.

The plot gets moving when Srinivas (Kesav Binoy Kiron) moves from Hong Kong to Mira’s school. Predictably, the law-abiding girl finds herself falling for the law-breaking boy. But quite unpredictably, we sense jealousy between the mother and daughter over how much attention the charming young man gives to each. In fact, for a significant part of the film, Anila’s interactions with Srinivas seem far from appropriate. Mira wonders if her “puppy love” is inadequate in front of “big dog love”. But before long, the doubts are cleared, because, well, boys will be boys.

The film doesn’t preach, but ever so subtly exposes the hypocritic world Mira lives in. Behind the considerate boyfriend is a man adept at sweet talk, who knows that “people also have keys” and want to be told what they’d like to hear. Ms Bansal (Devika Shahani), the teacher who criticises a system that not so long ago didn’t allow girls to be head prefect, is also probably the strictest moral cop on campus. She reminded me of a college professor who was upset over how the “good girls always fall for the bad boys”.

The story is as much Anila’s as it is Mira’s. Anila is aware that she deserves to be appreciated for more than the food she cooks, and refuses to laugh at her husband’s joke about not having known better when he proposed to her. Was she seeking in Srinivas the attention denied by her husband, or am I just prudish, I can’t yet decide. 

There is a scene in which Anila questions Ms Bansal over an issue at school. For someone who grew up on a steady diet of Mollywood fathers who barge into the principal’s office to defend their children, the mother standing up for her child was a welcome change. 

Girls Will be Girls is filled with moments from our adolescence. There is the first taste of power as head prefect Mira chides students for the wrong coloured socks or painted nails. There is the teacher that humiliates you for the length of your skirt and ruins friendships by forcing the ‘good girl’ to snitch on her friends. There is also the discovery of your body, the awakening of sexual desires, the first crush, the shame of body hair, and the anxiety over perfecting the first kiss.

Girls Will be Girls flows like a river, pleasantly at places, gushing at others, but when it finally arrives at the sea and the credits roll, it makes you want to sit with the film for a little longer. As a woman, the film spoke to me about that deep understanding one can only expect from other women who have lived the same lives as us.

Shuchi Talati’s script and direction is undoubtedly the best thing about the film. Also worth mentioning are the excellent actors, especially Preeti Panigrahi. A friend once told me that you should judge a film’s score based on how little it stands out: Pierre Oberkampf ensures that the music complements, not overpowers the film. 

The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, securing the World Cinema Dramatic (Audience) Award and the World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Acting for Preeti Panigrahi. It is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Disclaimer: This review was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the film. Neither TNM nor any of its reviewers have any sort of business relationship with the producers or any other members of its cast and crew.