[SXSW 2024] A NICE INDIAN BOY -- Charming Rom-Com Benefits From Fresh Perspective

Review by Sean Boelman

Credit: David Bukach

Real-life couple Roshan Sethi and Karan Soni worked together as director and actor on the former’s directorial debut, 7 Days, but their second collaboration takes it to a new level. A Nice Indian Boy is a gay rom-com that’s hard not to love, offering a refreshing gay spin on a familiar storyline.

Adapted from a play by Madhuri Shekar, the film follows an Indian young man who wants nothing more than to have a big Indian wedding, to the dismay of his traditional family, who struggles to reconcile with him being gay. Although the story follows many of the typical beats of the rom-com, it’s such a well-told story that it’s very charming.

A Nice Indian Boy has tons of laughs, but none of them break the mold. It’s predominantly fish-out-of-water comedy from the gay protagonist being in heteronormative situations and his white love interest being in scenarios in which he seemingly does not belong. Seeing a romantic comedy that’s wholesome and uplifting like this, not falling back on raunchy jokes, is pretty refreshing.

It will come as no surprise that the movie has a lovely message about being LGBTQIA+ in a conservative family and community. Although the film doesn’t add anything new to the conversation, it feels thoroughly authentic — no doubt thanks to the director/actor duo of Sethi and Soni — making the movie feel refreshing despite its familiarity.  

The most impressive thing about A Nice Indian Boy, though, is Karan Soni’s leading performance. The world has long known how funny Soni can be, and he certainly is here, but this film also affords him a rare opportunity to showcase his dramatic chops. His performance, like the movie, manages to be both incredibly specific and broadly relatable at the same time, making him one of the most compelling rom-com leads in recent memory. 

Jonathan Groff also brings a certain ineffable charm to his role as Soni’s love interest. His character is undoubtedly weird, but Groff plays it off in a way that’s still believably lovable and alluring. Sunita Mani gets a few amusing scenes in her supporting role, and Zarna Garg and Harish Patel are great — if a bit by the book — as Soni’s parents.

Although the film isn’t particularly flashy, it does manage to avoid the often confined feeling of movies adapted from plays. Instead, it largely adopts the generic style of the modern rom-com: agreeable but not especially interesting from a visual standpoint. Apart from one sequence at the end that incorporates traditional music and dance, the film lacks much of a distinct visual identity.

A Nice Indian Boy rides on the strength of its representation and the charisma and chemistry of its leads to stand out beyond its rom-com tropes. However, there’s something inexplicably satisfying about a rom-com this cute — especially when it’s about a gay couple — so it’s easy to write off how safe it can be at times.

A Nice Indian Boy screened at the 2024 SXSW Film Festival, which ran March 8-16 in Austin, TX.

Rating: 3.5/5