Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love Movie Review

The movie Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love was made in 1996. It was directed by Mira Nair. The casts include Indira Varma as Maya the maid in royal household, Sarita Choudhary as Tara the princess and friend of Maya, Naveen Andrews as Raj Singh the prince and the future king, Ramon Tikaram as Jai Kumar who is the love interest of Maya.

The term Kama Sutra in the title can be quite misguiding. Many who have not watched the movie might think it is based on just sex. Yes, it is true, but partially. Kama Sutra: A tale of love is more than just depicting two people having sex. Simply put, it tells how a one night stand during a wedding night changes the lives of Maya, Tara, Raj Singh and Jai Kumar.  As the movie progresses, we are introduced to the many social issues surrounding the ancient times of India. One of them deals with Tara’s distress. She becomes the queen of Raj Singh, but has not been happy in her life because her husband finds pleasure in other women’s arms. There is nothing she can do about it and thus must suffer alone in her mind. Meanwhile, Maya who becomes a trained concubine of Raj Singh must live in his harem and please him anytime he likes. But the problem is that she is in love with Jai Kumar and wants to spend the rest of her life with him. But when Raj Singh catches them together Jai Kumar is ferociously executed.

Back in 1996 I was just a kid and so my parents did not let me watch it. But recently, I had to rent it because I had class homework on it. So I basically had to watch the entire movie. What do I think about it? The story line is powerful. Although its real theme is sex the movie contains so many emotional scenes that it almost brought tears to my eyes. Also, they are so beautifully shot that I felt like watching them again and again. Yet it is important to mention that I am not quite convinced by the character Maya. According to the movie, she is the most innocent one. But the truth is that she is the main reason behind every disaster that takes place in other characters' lives. As for the actress who plays Maya, I will have to say that she is beautiful, but somehow gives an average performance.  She does not seem to be always natural and throughout the movie her pattern of script delivery is inconsistence. However, all other characters have performed their parts really well. Sarita Choudhary cutely plays the role of a princess who is totally spoiled. Same must be told for Naveen Andrews. Both of them bring out comical as well as serious moments throughout the movie and save the story from becoming too dull. Meanwhile, Ramon Tikaram pours down soothing effect. He talks calmly and at the same time he is well-mannered.

Even after all this, something happens in the climax which can be taken as one of the weak points of the movie.  Actually, in the beginning each story unfolds very slowly, but before the ending of the movie, everything suddenly speeds up. For instance, there is one scene where Tara tries to commit suicide and Maya saves her. This left me in question: how did Maya come to know that Tara was attempting to kill herself? Of course, after this life saving moment, all the scenes take place too quickly. As for the sex scenes, I am not convinced by them either. Maya breaks her virginity with Raj Singh and then again goes into another sex session with Jai Kumar in an unusual setting, but she never seems to get pregnant! I suppose they are depicted in the movie so that the central theme which is Kama Sutra can be well utilized. As a matter of fact, in the two sex scenes mentioned just now, the camera focuses a lot on the Kama Sutra positions being used by the characters. Overall, the story of Kama Sutra is emotional, but not completely natural. Yet the movie can be perfect for all those who wish to know about ancient culture and issues of India.