I remember seeing this at a 3rd I Film Festival, and I was shocked at how bad it was. The whole genre of "Indian-American films"- from American Desi onward- is usually amateurishly written, and keeps focusing on the same themes over and over again- not "fitting in" to American society, having difficulty with parents, dating, stereotypes of Indian culture, etc. The only reason 2nd generation South Asians like them so much is that between Bollywood and Hollywood, there was no genre that represented their experience. On top of that, I found the FOB caricature offensive (and I am an "ABCD" myself)- having parents, friends and relatives who are "FOBs" from metro areas and don't fit the stereotype of socially awkward, bad-smelling people that can't speak proper English. It's almost like ABCDs take pleasure in pointing out the differences because they are ashamed that many Anglos think of US that way. There is a wide diversity in the people who immigrate here, and I know that my cousins in Bombay, Delhi and Bangalore actually grew up in far more liberal and progressive environments than we did here- their parents had no problems with them dating in high school or becoming artists or whatever. And that's not to say that a person who grows up in a small village in Gujarat or Andhra Pradesh is going to smelly, socially-awkward and not worth knowing, just because their values are traditional or they dress differently. Indian-Americans who have been the target of racism here and therefore ashamed of their origins shouldn't take it out on their "FOB" brothers and sisters.
Review of Where's the Party Yaar?
