Sanya Malhotra's Mrs. is the Wake-Up Call Indian Families Need

Finished watching Sanya Malhotra's 'Mrs', and the movie's relatability meters just crossed 100%, with the instances of a 'typical Indian family'.

Picture Credits: Zee5

About the Movie:

Sanya Malhotra's Mrs. is a gripping adaptation of the Malayalam film 'The Great Indian Kitchen'. It has reimagined it, with the powerful theme, for a wider audience. Directed by Arati Kadav, this movie explores the ingrained patriarchy, rigid gender roles, unseen labor, and deemed household work that women endure after marriage. Through a quiet, yet intense narrative, Mrs. forces us to confront an uncomfortable reality of our Indian households.

The Plot:

Richa (Sanya Malhotra) marries Diwakar, a male gynecologist who still believes a woman’s place is in the kitchen. Despite her education and interest in dancing, she is reduced to household duties. Initially, she tries to adjust to the expectations of her new life, taking on household chores and fulfilling the role of a "traditional wife." However, she soon realizes the unspoken burden placed on her which are endless cooking, cleaning, and catering to her husband and in-laws. Mind that there are no or even a little appreciation for the things she does. As the storyline builds, the environment feels suffocating, even as an audience you'll feel the suffocation. The story highlights Richa's growing frustration and silent rebellion against a system that expects women to serve, & no more. Through subtle storytelling, Mrs. portrays how even seemingly ordinary, everyday routines can become oppressive when dictated by rigid societal expectations.

The question it forces upon us:

"Is this how societal expectations reduce a woman's worth to her ability to cook, clean, & serve?"

The movie shows several instances of how a woman faces burdens and gets haunted by patriarchy in the house. However, my perspective leans more toward the metaphors and symbolism that stood out to me:

The 'Gifts' Symbols of Restriction not Celebration

Richa, after the marriage, opens gifts and finds not one, but two casseroles. She moves on to open another, and finds 'a food processor'. Finally, she opens a gift from her friends, where she receives 'earphones' and that too, she asks if her husband would like to keep it. His husband, Diwakar comments "Looks like all the gifts are for you only", signifies that women and kitchen and their gifts. However, kitchen gifts are more tech-friendly these days, to minimize the burden of the family (as we think, when we gift). But it might not be the case on the other side, they might perceive it to be a woman's gift.

Now, the question is whether these gifts, can we accept them as unisex, or change the idea of gifting kitchen items completely?

The Clean Kitchen Sink

The morning after marriage day, Richa enters the kitchen, every thing is bright, pristine, which is symbolizing the fresh start of a new life. Richa is seen washing green vegetables, signifying the initial 'purity' and 'freshness' she brings to the house. But this illusion of harmony is quickly shattered when her mother-in-law cleans the clogged sink with her bare hands, explaining to her that "we cannot wait for the cleaner to arrive, we need to clean it." This shows an unspoken gesture that silently welcomes Richa into the cycle of enduring the 'dirt of the household'. In the next scene, the mother-in-law flies to see her pregnant daughter and help her through with food and household work, while Richa assures she will look after everything.

Shifting Interest from Dance to Domesticity

At first, Richa enjoys her alone time in the kitchen watching dance practice videos on YouTube, engaging in a passion that brings her joy.

She starts dancing, with earphones on, while she does the kitchen chores. But, the father-in-law breaks her meditative zone and makes her realize that, all these are not going to work here.

Soon, her focus shifts - now she watches cooking videos, her interests changes to cooking food i.e., tastier and better for her family. She cooks biryani in cooker once and receives the comment that it is 'pulao' and not 'biryani'. Now, she learns in the same kitchen watching YT video of a 'biryani recipe'. The subtlety of this transition is heartbreaking: what once for herself is not dictated by duty.

The symbolism? The dish biryani - complex and layered like the labor-intensive expectations placed on her one by one.

The Dustbin of Rejected Dreams

Richa throws away the green chutney that her father-in-law disapproves of. The reason? It was made using mixer-grinder and not on the traditional stone manually. The throwing away of the chutney represents the silent rejection of her dreams. It's like whatever she does to impress, her happy emotions will lie in that 'dustbin'. She had hoped to continue dancing, and also asks her father-in-law for the permission to join as a dance teacher. But the denial from him shows a simple chutney parallel, as a denial of her autonomy. The dustbin becomes the graveyard of her aspirations and happy emotions.

The Red Balloon

Amids the drudgery of her new life and new responsibilities of cleaning duties, cooking duties, and taking care duties, she finds a red balloon floating up to the ceiling. The moment was rare because as she was cleaning beside sofa, she finds the red balloon. It's like the fleeting happiness she finds amidst her life which are full of struggles at this moment. The color red, often associated with marriage (sindoor, bangles, bridal wear), takes on a different meaning here. Instead of symbolizing love and commitment, it reflects the little breath of freedom she so desperately craves.

The Clogged Sink

Days pass, and the sink, once spotless, is now filled with dirty utensils. As the water refuses to drain, Richa’s perception of her family begins to clog as well. Her initial optimism is now blocked by a buildup of 'unspoken expectations' and 'disappointments'. She tries to clear it with a stick, like it is showing that she has been trying to do her best, but she is failing in this household. She uses her hands—she immerses herself in the problem, only to find filth. The clogged sink is her own-suffocated existence, in this house.

The Leaking Pipe

The clogged drain is not even the problem, the pipe starts leaking - a 'quiet' and 'constant leak'. Richa tries to fix it, tying a cloth around it - much like how she tries to hold the family together by cooking elaborate meals and trying to keep everyone happy and satisfied. But the leak persists, unable to stop it, so she finally places a 'small bucket' underneath, allowing it to fill it. That bucket? It's her suppressed emotions, gradually accumulating, watiting for the inevitable overflow.

Mrs.: The Unspoken Burden Passed Down to Women

Richa starts her period, and Diwakar being a gynac himself believes in all the rubbish theories "Don't enter the kitchen for 5 days". Does he not know? Some women have it for 3 days? Some for 7 days? Gynac! While she was resting, they hired a helper to cook and clean the house. The helper and her child would often visit to take care of small chores.

In a poignant scene, a worker throws a bucket of water outside, and the feet of her daughter is washed in it. This moment isn't just visually poetic - it' generational cycle. The burdens of silent endurance are passed down from mother to daughter, conditioning them to accept suffering as a norm.

A Masculine Display, not Domestic Contribution

In another scene, where a family of three, relatives, visits them. Tunnu Bhaiya (that irritating, rubbish relative) decides 'Aaj mutton mard banayenge" - The mutton will be cooked by the men today. [Eating mutton traditionally is linked with building stamina due to high protein content and cultural symbolism of having mutton by men to celebrate success or happy occassions].

Funny enough! Their involvement in making the food is superficial, they cook, but the actual labour (chopping, marinating, cleaning) is left to the women.

Even in their moments of 'help', they leave behind a mess, reinforcing how men often step into traditionally feminine roles only when it suits them, without taking on the full weight of responsibility.

Karwa Chauth: A Rotten Tradition?

This was their first karwa chauth - pretty special huh!? [Karwa chauth is an Indian tradition, observed by women to pray for the 'long life' of their husbands]. For this festival, Bua ji visits them, because her mother in law isn't there. The preparations for Karwa Chauth begin as she fasts, watching others eat while spending the entire day cooking for them—without taking a bite herself.

Bua ji opens the masala box from the kitchen, only to find that the spices have gone bad. She also comments on the dripping water from the pipeline and says to Richa, "the more clean the kitchen is, the prosperous your house will be". The metaphor is striking, just as the kitchen (Richa's world) is deteriorating, so is the belief that a clean kitchen equals a prosperous home. Bua ji's blind faith on this idea is ironic, for it is not the kitchen but 'Richa's spirit' that has been decaying under the weight of expectations. Richa's response - "the entire pipeline needs to be changed" - showing that this isn't just about the plumbing. It's a declaration that her entire life system needs a repair.

The Overflowing Bucket: The Breaking Point

The breaking point is slowly observed when Diwakar ask her to delete her dance videos from the internet. She is heartbroken. She stands on her decision and says 'No' she will never delete them. Their relationship is breaking. The distance between them is showing. Next, comes the father-in-law's birthday, where Diwakar asks Richa to prepare 'top-class' lunch with no mistake.

Her apperance was fresh when she got married, makeup perfectly done, hair styled neatly, and with a radiant face. But by the end, her face had creased with anger and exhaustion, her complextion turned dull and greyish, and her hair, once smoooth, was now crinkled up in a messy bun.

Back to the party, several guests from office, relatives arrives on the birthday party - around 15-20 people?! Yes. That would mean hiring a caterer for a normal family. But they instructed the lady of the house to cook every thing. She cooks alone, bearing the weight of their entitlement. The bucket under the leaking sink is now on the verge of overflowing—just like her patience. That 'Tunnu Bhaiya' is back with his regressive comments, and demands like "who wants to have shikanji", and 8-9 hands were up on the air.

Richa's looks are scarier than ever, peaceful, but scary. She is sitting, thinking, looking like her emotions may overflow any time, rage is flickering in her eyes, jaw clenched, she looked like she is struggling to contain the storm that is going on within.

Her husband shouts, “Where’s the shikanji?”

That triggered, she went on to pick that filthy bucket water, yes the one that was filling with the broken pipeline and clogged drains (her emotions). She uses the filthy water and fills the glasses, and serves it by slamming the tray down.

A silent, powerful act—her emotions, her resentment, her exhaustion, all poured into those glasses. When her husband yells again, "What is this, Richa?" the air vibrates with the force of his anger, as if he is storming toward her.

But in a sudden turn, the opposite happens - Richa grabs the bucket of filthy water and throws the water straight at him, before he yells.

She doesn’t just stand up for herself, but she lets go of all the pain she’s been holding inside.

Footprints

Richa entered the house with red alta (a culture where bride enters the house with red footprints, symbolizing goddess lakshmi bringing wealth). It was a symbol of her happiness and colorful new life.

Raging after throwing the bucket of water, she grabs the car keys and storms out, leaving behind footprints of grey, filthy water as she steps away from the house.

The grey footprints symbolizes the burden that she has endured.

The transformation is complete! She has shed the burden, leaving behind a pristine, obedient wife, but a woman who has chosen herself. She dances as if her dream has come to life. On the other hand, the husband marries another lost soul, and history repeats itself.

"Mrs. - A horror story for me" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ofcourse, it deserves 5 stars!

I just finished watching Mrs., and I don't think I'll forget this move anytime soon. When I played it, watched it for 15 minutes, and felt the 'horror', because I have not observed it in my household. Ofcourse, I'd be lying if I say, nothing I've observed, but I did not observe it to the core it showed, which infact is taken from the real stories. I've observed how the 'men' deserve to eat first in the family or how 'you touch husband's feet because men are superior, during wedding. What I have never experienced is the silent, passive-aggresive treatment being given to Richa. She was asked to not use machines but her hands to wash clothes, to mix spices, and to clean the household. It was expected a lot from her in this century, where his family were full of doctors (gynac infact). The character Richa felt 'too real' and I could imagine the feeling she was going through - I felt 'suffocated' and 'anxious'. If I'm being honest then, the movie is not comfortable to watch, at times you want to question what if I'm married into a family like this? What if no one understands me in future? What if suddenly every one changes and becomes like the family shown in this film? Will all my self worth, my achievements, go in vain? This film will make you question a lot—especially if you're a woman. If you're a man with a heart, you'll feel its weight and might even consider sharing the burden. But if you're the kind who counters, you'll dismiss it all as nonsense, and we will know the sufferings of your mother and wife.

Where to Watch?

Zee5

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