‘Lord Curzon Ki Haveli’ review: A stilted, feeble comment on India’s tryst with colonialism

Rohit and Sanya have invited Sanya’s friend Ira and Ira’s husband Basuki over for dinner to their cottage in what appears to be the outskirts of London. It’s a casual affair, with the hosts unbothered about putting on a show. Sanya (Zoha Rahman) is kitted out in a drab shirt-dress. Rohit (Arjun Mathur) serves his guests drinks but no snacks. The dinner: take-out pizza.

Ira (Rasika Dugal) doesn’t care. Ira’s clothes and overall demeanour fit the fresh-off-the-boat archetype – she even refers to her adopted homeland as “Ing-Laind”. Her spouse Basuki (Paresh Pahuja), on the other hand, is the epitome of the Indian immigrant who strives to be more British than the British.

Basuki is struggling to make a connection with a needlessly aggressive Rohit – the lack of appetisers is surely a source of irritation too. Basuki’s attention is diverted by a locked wooden chest in the vicinity. There’s a body inside it, Rohit claims – the corpse of George Curzon, who served as the viceroy in the days when India was ruled by the British. Basuki’s interest is piqued, and then he is obsessed with the contents of the chest.

Actor Anshuman Jha’s directorial debut Lord Curzon Ki Havel, written by Bikas Ranjan Mishra, is in...

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