With the release of the beloved Archies comics in Hindi and English, Zoya Akhtar has yet another impressive feather in her cap.
Zoya Akhtar rarely makes mistakes. She’s the lady cool of Bollywood, a carefree, creative enfant terrible whose next project’s subject is never known. Thus, it makes for a subversively delicious proposition that the Gully Boy (2019) director chose to tackle a comic book series that we can all agree is long out of style for her new movie.
The Archies begins with the main character showing a group of visitors around Riverdale’s beloved Green Park, a vast green lung that has been transformed into a charming hill station in India complete with cozy salons run by kindly aunties and charming bookshops staffed by Parsi gentlemen who quote Shakespeare. “Public interest versus corporate interest” is the main conflict, as Yuvraj Menda’s character Dilton Doiley states in the classroom. After returning from London, Veronica’s (Suhana Khan) outrageously wealthy parents intend to destroy the town for their personal gain. The teens are about to learn of the cunning capitalist scheme and launch an offensive to preserve Riverdale’s and Green Park’s traditional ways. Prior to that, though, it indulges in the classic Archie clichés: the love triangle, Jughead’s clumsy, gluttonous ways, Reggie’s irresistible vanity, and Veronica’s foxy charm are all retained.
