What put me terribly off is the concocted diversity of issues that a couple face in Rakhee Sandilya's Ribbon, a sweet little film that turns sour right when you are enjoying it. But that's exactly the whole point of showcasing what a couple transforming into a nuclear family face in a metro city in India. From unabashed gender discrimination at work to familial tiffs to issues with the functioning of a household, Ribbon has it all, topped with a violent performance by Kalki Koechlin and an equally competing one by Sumeet Vyas. Parenthood hits them like a typhoon in the US and all that follows is what I like to call new-age problems that do not have solutions. Along with fitting music and numbing dialogues by Raghav Dutt, director Sandilya takes her viewers on a journey that is relatable and nonchalant, eventually taking them to the end of a cliff and threatening that she will push. Ribbon is heartbreaking but it does not fool its audience. It has its flaws - with the major one being convolution - but then indie films have stories to tell. With it with your partner and you will take away a thing or two. TN.
