Rhea Kapoor talks about the positive reactions to her production Thank You For Coming, which stars Bhumi Pednekar.
Thank You For Coming has opened to positive reviews from critics and a surprisingly healthy number at the box office despite a limited release (Rs 1 crore from only 500 screens). The Karan Boolani-directorial is a chick flick that talks unabashedly about female sexuality and hence, its makers see this positive reaction as a validation of their vision. Talking about the film’s reception on its first day, producer Rhea Kapoor speaks exclusively to DNA.
Unable to hide her glee, a smiling Rhea says, “I am obviously very happy. I have never had a film so well reviewed. I am not used to good reviews (laughs). I make chick flicks so I am used to bad reviews.” The filmmaker says that the film is a validation for her as she stuck to her guns after the success of Veere Di Wedding. “Honestly, the best part of the whole thing has been the reaction videos I have been getting from girls after watching the show. I can’t explain the feeling. It’s validation of sorts. When you make something like Veere Di Wedding that makes money and is a commercial hit, people expect you to change the way you make movies. They expect you to play that game. The most validating thing is taking a risk and going back to doing what I want to make. Clearly, this move is not made for the masses,” says Rhea.
Thank You For Coming stars Bhumi Pednekar as a woman who has never experienced an orgasm until she does one fine night but can’t remember who gave it to her. The film is her search – along with her gang of girls – for the mystery man. There has been some backlash from a section of the audience that feels the film is titillating or crass. Rhea responds to the criticism, “The male gaze is not just about how men think women think but also about how we feel comfortable looking at women. Most people are comfortable looking at women as martyrs, mothers, or as virgins or vamps. The female gaze is about saying that I, too, am a person just like you. I am going through the same things as you and I can’t be controlled by what makes you uncomfortable. That can’t limit my life, my self expression, and my stories more than anything else.”
However, Rhea adds that women are often conditioned into a feeling of guilt when they try to shift that gaze. “I think we are so conditioned that it’s difficult for us to shift that gaze. We question ourselves, feel some guilt about it. We feel a lot of guilt about making other comfortable,” she says, adding, “So when you start saying things that make others uncomfortable, you are going against your very conditioning.”
Rhea sums up her philosophy to filmmaking, saying, “I want that when a guy or a girl goes to the movies, they should have a good time. My hope is that maybe they come out thinking we absorbed something but more than anything we had a good time. I don’t want to give gyaan or preach. All I want to do is provide a safe space for the audience to be able to express themselves.”
Thank You For Coming also stars Shehnaaz Gill, Kusha Kapila, Dolly Singh, Shibani Bedi, Dolly Ahluwalia, Sushant Digvikar, and Karan Kundrra, with a cameo by Anil Kapoor. The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last month before its theatrical release this Friday (October 6). The makers are hoping that after the positive reviews, the film should grow via word of mouth.
