One of the films many of us here at BollySpice cannot wait to see is Tanu Weds Manu, which stars Kangana Ranaut, R Madhavan, Swara Bhaskar and Eijaz Khan. The film, which releases on February 25, 2011 is a quirky romantic comedy that traces the journey of a mismatched arranged marriage. That marriage is between Kangana’s Tanu and Madhavan’;s Manu. But there is also a parallel story about Tanu’s best friend Payal. Payal is played by Swara Bhaskar and we have the inside scoop about her character!
Payal Jha played by Swara Bhaskar is Tanu’s intimate and probably only girl-friend! They both went to college and hostel together in Delhi. Payal comes from a Bihari family of politicians, and Payal is everything that Tanu is not! She too is intelligent and independent like Tanu, but she is sorted and stable. She knows how to manage her family’s expectations and her own desires from life. She will never do anything to shock or pain her family, she will never rebel against her family, she will instead convince them to support her decision. Like when Payal meets the Sikh gabru jawaan Jassi at a friend’s wedding and in three hours the two are in love! Payal’s “theth” Bihari family is shocked at the prospect of an inter-caste, inter religious wedding for the only daughter in the families and her four brothers are horrified at what such an alliance with robust Sardars would do for their election campaign, but Payal with her typical goodness of nature and resolute will convinces her family and without running away or doing any unnecessary tamasha Jassi and Payal are set to wed with the full energy of a typical Punjabi wedding.
Payal is also the voice of reason, and reality check in Tanu’s life. She is the only person who can tolerate Tanu’s tantrums and tell Tanu some home truths about Tanu’s wild behaviour. She knows Tanu better than anyone and keeps trying to make Tanu where her happiness lies.
Payal is a romantic and wants happy endings for everyone around her. She is a dutiful daughter, an affectionate sister, a loving friend and an ideal girlfriend who you would love to take home to meet your family…. But she has a fiery temper and doesn’t hesitate to give Jassi a piece of her mind or a beating with a stick if he provokes her too much!
