Mrs Review: A Heartbreaking Saga of Indian Kitchens

Mrs Review (2025, Zee5) | Leisurebyte

Director: Arati Kadav

Date Created: 2025-02-07 00:00

Editor's Rating:
3.5

Based on the fantastic and haunting 2021 Malayalam film The Great Indian Kitchen, the Hindi adaptation follows Richa, whose expectations of a dreamy married life turn sour when she realises the unending expectations that she will have to face at her in-laws, all the while giving up on her own hopes, dreams and ambitions. As the pressure rises, will Richa be able to accept this life of servitude or break free from society’s expectations and live for herself?

The film has a runtime of 106 minutes.

Mrs Review

There are few things as triggering and distressing as watching the unpaid, overlooked and unappreciated labour of homemakers in Indian society. Zee5 film Mrs, the Hindi adaptation of The Great Indian Kitchen, will leave viewers to take a look at their own lives and the efforts put into making their homes function mostly by the women in their lives. The film is almost a scene-for-scene copy of the Malayalam original with some things mixed in to cater to the Hindi-speaking audience.

I think Sanya Malhotra does great justice to the story and her character. We can see her questioning the immaturity and sexist attitudes in her new home but, as in most of these abusive systems, she takes a little bit of time to come to her senses. I will not call it rebelling because asking to not slave away in the kitchen and doing unnecessarily complicated things just for the heck of it seems to be common sense — thus not wanting to do that is not rebellion, it’s letting common sense prevail.

Anyway, as I mentioned previously, this will be a very triggering film for many because it’s so subtle that it gets under your skin. You expect the gynaecologist husband to be more understanding of his new wife’s plights but when even he demands that his clothes be kept out on the bed before he goes off to work, you know things aren’t getting better here. The film does a fantastic job of bringing these triggers to light in the most hard-hitting way possible. Although it’s so common in our everyday lives, it feels so silly when you look in from the outside.

One of the other fantastic parts of both the original and the Hindi remake is the beautiful dishes that Richa and her mother-in-law cook up for their family. It’s interesting how dismissive the men are of what it takes to keep a consistent stream of hot rotis coming and chatni that is made on the mortar and pestle, while also juggling to put out their shoes for them to wear. It’s this dismissiveness that will really get under everyone’s skin and leave you absolutely fuming. There’s a particular kind of rage that comes from watching films like this and Mrs does a great job of bringing that unfair dismissiveness to the table, along with showcasing how impossible it is to win in a situation such as this.

Final Thoughts

Mrs movie is heartbreaking and quite moving and captures the essence of working in an Indian kitchen. It brings to light the unseen labour that goes behind keeping a home functioning that most people choose to not pay any heed to and makes us watch in uncomfortable detail. Richa breaking free from her sexist in-laws is almost freeing but in reality, are we doing right by our mothers and wives who give up their all to make our lives easier? I guess that’s a thought to give.

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