Review: Definition Please

1/29/2021

Actor-director Sujata Day's Definition Please is a breath of fresh air — a warm, funny, and personal directorial debut from Sujata Day, herself.

When it comes to Hollywood, things tend to move incredibly slow. The fact is, that we have been pushing for Hollywood to make more movies with representation for years now. We need more stories with/about women and men of color and more stories around the LGBTQ community — representing what America truly is. Being in an interracial marriage myself (my wife Glynis who is Peruvian), I have become more aware of listening and learning from other people's stories. Understanding these stories is a way of moving our society closer towards equality for all. In Day's film, Definition Please, we follow the story of a South Asian-American family living in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and their struggle to move on from their father’s death, one year later. Through this dramedy, we meet Monica Chowdry (a fantastic Day) — who is a former National Spelling Bee champion grappling to get her life together. But Monica is also tackling life blissfully, she smokes weed, has casual sex, and tutors a handful of kids throughout each day. However, Monica is also embarrassed that she is not a successful doctor or lawyer her parents had encouraged her to be.

Monica's parents immigrated from India over to the U.S. to begin a new life, and their American-born children have taken different paths for their lives. Monica also has a strained relationship with her older brother (a strong Ritesh Rajan), who has just returned home for their father's one-year memorial. Sonny (Rajan) also struggles with Bipolar disorder, and the toll it puts on his family. Rajan captures the gravity of this mental illness one scene at a time. Monica's widowed mother, Jaya (a perfect Anna Khaja) is also recovering from an illness. Or, is it an elaborate plan to force her children to bond together? Mother knows best. Day's film is a breath of fresh air as we see an Indian-American actress front and center in a leading role for a picture. We see a woman of color telling the narrative her way, free and also deeply connected with her cultural heritage. In addition, Day wrote, produced, directed, and even starred in her own film. Day has an incredible gift at hand, and she needs to be given more in the Hollywood spotlight.

While the traditional Hollywood gatekeepers tried to push Day aside, she went around them and found her path forward, telling the stories that she wants to tell. Her story of a South Asian-American family is one that many Brown people in America can reflect on — continuing to show why representation matters. Day began her career by appearing as CeeCee in Issa Rae’s breakthrough web series The Misadventures of an Awkward Black Girl. She has continued to work with Rae in HBO's Insecure, as Sarah. Through it all, Day has shown us that she has a bright future ahead of her, and I am excited to see more of her work. Through this blend of comedy, romance, and drama, we get an honest portrayal of family. We will keep speaking up until Hollywood starts making movies that fully reflects everyone. In the end, Definition Please is Day's very American movie.

Definition Please is Not Rated (NA)

Directed by Sujata Day

Starring Sujata Day, Ritesh Rajan, Anna Khaja, Jake Choi, Lalaine, Kunal Dudheker, Sunfish Bala, Esha Chundru, Meera Simhan, Sonal Shah, Tim Chiou, and Parvesh Cheena.