Anushka Purohit - Toilet: Ek Prem Katha [Review]

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We asked our readers to write a review of a movie they think deserves an Oscar. Here is one of the entries. It has not been edited.

What’s something all humans have to do? Eat, drink, but most importantly, go to the toilet. What happens when you recently get married, but your new home doesn’t have a toilet? Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (Toilet: A love story) is a satirical comedy, supporting governmental campaigns to improve sanitation conditions and eradicating the infamous idea of open defecation, especially in rural areas around the world. Keshav (Akshay Kumar) falls in love with Jaya (Bhumi Pednekar), a liberal thinker from his neighbouring village.
 

They wish to get married, but Jaya does not fulfil Keshav’s father’s superstitious regulation of having two thumbs, so after getting an artificial thumb made as a ring for Jaya, the two finally get married. It doesn’t strike Keshav to let Jaya know that there is no toilet in his house: on the very first morning of her first day as a newly wedded woman, Jaya experiences waking up at early hours in the morning to go to a field to defecate. She files a divorce, citing the lack of a toilet in her husband’s house as the primary reason for the divorce. The case gathers a lot of media attention, and eventually, the construction of toilets in the village begins.

The beautiful soundtrack of the music only adds to the movie, strengthening the love between Keshav and Jaya, and making it all the more shocking that they separate because of the lack of a latrine. It almost questions the audience: how can we love someone without giving them their basic right? The film is far from a documentary on sanitisation, instead reiterating the bizarre nature of treating our women worse than animals, depriving them of the basic right to even a toilet. It is more interesting to see a man stand up for this right for women, with Keshav singlehandedly battling the entire village in an effort to save his failing marriage.

The film deserves an oscar for the important message that the film advocates. The film is the complete package: entertainment, drama, and relevance. It offers a fresh plot that is balanced with an interesting story, with power presentations by known and unknown faces of the Bollywood industry. The set of the film is apt, with characters using language commonly heard in villages, giving the film a realistic presentation. Great cinematography coupled with the passionate portrayal of roles definitely makes this film Oscar deserving.

Check out all the other entries here.

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