Love Storiyaan Review — Sucharita Tyagi
On our social media pages, every day we share news of people hurting all over the world, maybe on some level just reminding ourselves only that we’re not hardened by it all, that we still feel emotions, and that life itself is worth experiencing, despite the suffering.
Apologies for starting on a gloomy note, par iss sab ke beech mein if you’re looking for additional reminders there still is something that connects us all, reminding us of our shared humanity, try out this new series on Prime Video.
Produced by Karan Johar’s Dharma productions, Love Storiyaan takes stories documented by India Love Project, an Instagram page founded by Priya Ramani, Samar Halarnkar & Niloufer Venkatraman. The page is dedicated to documenting stories of people who have overcome all kinds of societal obstacles to be with the person they love. It’s a warm, safe space, if a bit corny, the way mushy rom-coms tend to be.
It is not all corny and sugary-sweet though and because stories without drama don’t tend to translate well to cinema, Love Storiyaan mein miliye 6 couples se, who almost didn’t make it.
With the inaugural episode helmed by Hardik Mehta, the series starts off on a shaky note with what is arguably the least “dramatic” film of the anthology. How a mother of 2 left an abusive marriage with her daughters and later chose to marry a man of her choice. Hardik chooses to focus on the positives, and not on what it took for the lady to liberate herself from a life she did not want. In a time when EVERYTHING must be sensational for it to grab our attention, it’s a bold choice. However, her kids didn’t want her to re-marry a man they didn’t know is too straightforward an approach to the story told partially with talking heads and partially with dramatic recreation. The narrative meanders slowly, often repeating itself. The film feels hesitant. However, if you’re in need of a persuasive tool for convincing your parents to get a pet, this might just do the trick.
Disjointed screenplay troubles continue in episode two, directed by Vivek Soni, and this time, not for the lack of inbuilt drama in the story. 2 radio show hosts connect thanks to a listener, falling in love and marrying despite family’s objection, but even with a sub-plot about substance abuse, the story fails to soar. We are TOLD issues in the marriage were dealt with, relying too heavily on the talking heads, ironically in a story about people who talk for a living. A missed opportunity to delve deeper into people who I’m sure are fascinating.
Shazia Iqbla’s short — Homecoming co-directed by Rahul Badwalekar FINALLY gets the ball rolling and tears going. The protagonists Farida Saha and Sunit Kumar Saha are in their 70s, together since they fought for Bangladesh’s liberation the 70s, now living in Kolkata. The episode is a triumph because it manages to be about so much MORE than the people it’s profiling. Its an insight into the South Asia of the 70s, why enrolling in college was more than just getting a higher education. Amidst the backdrop of communal harmony and a lifelong commitment, Homecoming bothers with getting to the NEED for relationships, WHY India Love Project chronicles stories no one else would. The transformative power of revolution is showcased through impressive dramatic reenactments. That personal is political and you should be so lucky to find someone you can do both with. The film journeys from Kolkata to Bangladesh where the couple were originally from. They get to meet some family members, visit a grave, and an empty piece of land that used to be home to one of them. Everything is different, and just as you begin to think there is nothing here for the two of them, and old college friend shows up to surprise the couple. A dam breaks, and everyone is hugging, crying, realizing they never truly left. Shazia and Rahul also carefully, slowly let you in on secrets the family has kept for generations, stories of loss and death they have worked hard to forget. The short is dynamic, there is movement, actual life, and a real human history the film is interested in, without rushing to the “happily ever after”.
The 4th film, Raah Sangharsh Ki by Akshay Indikar is about a couple that chose to leave material luxuries behind, commit to each other despite caste differences, purely united in their pursuit of social justice. This film too again takes you back in time to the Narmada Bachao Andolan, and Brahmin man and Dalit woman standing together in love and purpose. This short is equal parts heart-warming and confounding tbh. The first few shots are intriguing. A woman escapes in the middle of the night holding an infant in her arms, a man comes on and talks about sedition charges against him. The title even suggests the opposition to this love story won’t just be from families, there is going to be a story of defeating systems. But the film unfortunately forgets its own setup. However, the story of Subhadra Khaperde and Rahul Banerjee is wonderous enough for the viewer to forget what its promise was. Akshay Indikar is clearly in awe of Subhadra and the way she chooses to live her life, evident in the treatment of the film. When she says she doesn’t like to be described as a wife or Rahul as a husband, the film stands by her opinion so strongly it makes you think why are YOU so okay with being someone’s something or other?
Archana Phadke comes in with the most ambitious short in terms of scale, Faasley. Dhanya Ravindran falls in love with the Afghan Homanyon Khoram while they are both students in Moscow, they marry in India but soon find themselves in Afghanistan with no way to get out. Archana attempts to tackle profound themes of privilege and resilience amidst political upheaval. Perhaps because of the sheer magnitude and vastness of the story that had to be wrapped up within 30 minutes, Faasle felt like a surface-level exploration of the challenges faced by married couples separate due to war. But despite rushing through pivotal moments, the episode offers poignant reflections on human strength and familial bonds, leaving viewers pondering the fragility of life’s desires.
Finally, “Love Beyond Labels” by Collin D’Cunha presents a simple yet touching story set in Kolkata. Dipan Chakraborty a trans man finds Tista Das a trans woman, and what begins as a relationship between a social worker and a man looking for support, gradually transforms into a sweet little love story where gender rules and dynamics only come into play when jokes are being made about who is supposed woo whom and how. Collin D’Cunha delicately navigates the challenges faced by individuals with non-binary identities, offering a poignant reflection on the struggles of self-acceptance and societal acceptance. It also just lets Dipan and Tista be, two people who just HAPPEN to be trans. They too take the train to work, text each other sweet things, go on dates and celebrate anniversaries. “Surgery isn’t as painful as our lives can be”, Dipan said about the time when they lived without acceptance, summing up what the film is about. All anyone wants to do is live with dignity and love, why must anyone disallow them that?
Overall, Love Storiyaan is a mixed bag of tales that vary in depth and emotional impact. Some episodes soar, some not so much. Nevertheless, the series succeeds in shedding light on the many faces of love in contemporary India, making it a worthwhile watch if you are simply craving heartfelt storytelling with a dash of realism, and a reminder transformative power of love. The series is now streaming on Prime Video.
So, on a scale of 1 to 10, Love Storiyaan is 1 additional recommendation I may make is Shazia Iqbal’s 20-minute short film Bebaak, about a girl searching for personal freedom amid rules of the religion she’s born into. Kahaan milegi online woh aap Shazia ko message karke poochein.
