There are plenty of films made in India on cricket, as the game is practically another religion in the country. Perhaps the only thing that brings people together to support our national team. Films like 83, M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story, Jersey, Shabaash Mithu, Kaun Pravin Tambe, Iqbal, and Kai Po Che are some of the finest films to have been made using cricket as a background because, at some point, every young boy or girl wants to become a cricketer and represent the country. While some stories are based on true events, others are fictionalized around the game of cricket and show what it means to people who give all of their time and energy to it. Mr. and Mrs. Mahi, directed by Sharan Sharma, is the story of a cricket-obsessed couple who find a way to make the sport a big part of their lives.
Spoilers Ahead
Why was Mahendra not allowed to play cricket?
Mahendra “Mahi” Aggarwal always wanted to be a cricketer, while his father, who ran a sports goods shop in the city of Jaipur, had lost hope in him. His father was fed up with Mahendra trying to make a career out of playing cricket. After not clearing a selection, Mahendra’s father forced him to give up his dream of playing for the state, and he had to resort to joining their business. Mahendra was always taunted by his father for not achieving anything in life, while the main store wall was covered with his father’s photographs with several sports celebrities. The young man was jealous of the fact that his father had never recognized his talent. Besides, his brother was a television celebrity, and his popularity bothered him as his father focused attention on the other sibling and not him.
How did Mahima and Mahendra meet?
Mahendra and Mahima “Mahi” met through an arranged marriage set up when the groom’s father oversold him as a man who had great business acumen. Meanwhile, Mahima was a doctor who was keen on getting married to Mahendra, even though he confessed to having achieved nothing in life. Mahima was moved by his honesty and vulnerability, which made her agree to the match. On the night of the wedding, both discovered their love and passion for cricket, which made their marriage special. They began to spend a lot of their time watching cricket on television and in stadiums, which only brought them closer as a couple.
What caused further friction between Mahendra and his father?
During a match night, Mahendra accidentally left the shop open, only for it to get robbed, which enraged his father and led to another bout of friction between the two. This forced Mahendra to consider taking cricket coaching classes again in the hope of proving his father wrong. Mahima supported his decision, but his previous coach had no confidence in his skill and dubbed him an average player. The coach was self-aware enough to have called himself an average player as well, but he channeled all the knowledge towards coaching other talented players. Mahendra was not keen on taking up coaching but soon changed his mind. Unfortunately, it was too late, as the position was offered to someone else, and Mahendra could not help but curse his destiny and bad timing.
Why did Mahendra decide to coach Mahima?
On the same day, Mahendra and his ex-coach witnessed Mahima hitting sixes at a local gully game. Mahendra was in shock at seeing the strength and intensity with which she was playing the game. He came across a golden opportunity to train her and make her one of the best cricketers, but only if she was willing to dedicate herself and give time to develop this into a dream run. Mahendra was insistent, and after a lot of thinking, Mahima decided to quit her medicine practice for a while to give herself fully to the game. Mahima confessed to having loved playing cricket, but her father distracted her from the game she loved and channeled her energy into studying. Her passion for playing died down, but her interest in the game never did, which made her follow her husband’s plan to turn her into a seasoned cricketer.
Was Mahendra jealous of her success?
Mahendra and Mahima got into rigorous training to make sure she got selected for the state women’s team. It was not an easy task, but Mahendra’s constant support helped her become better as the days went by. It also proved Mahendra was a talented coach who could turn a rookie into a professional player. Mahima does get selected for the state team, but to Mahendra’s shock, she was asked about everything in the press conference, and as the news telecast happened, everything she had mentioned about Mahendra was edited out by the press. This was the beginning of Mahendra feeling insecure about his wife’s success, while Mahima, on the other hand, was on cloud nine as she had a husband who was her coach as well, giving her unconditional support. The support began to dwindle when, on every step, Mahendra sought validation for Mahima’s success, which included going to social media to talk about his contribution to making her a talented cricketer. Since Mahima was now becoming a seasoned player, she had begun to struggle, and instead of helping her, Mahendra began to blame his wife for not accommodating time for an interview with him.
An angry Mahendra lashed out at her and pinpointed the fact that she was nothing without him. He also let it out that he felt Mahima was purposely keeping him away so that she could take the limelight, as all he wanted was some recognition of his hard work seen or heard somewhere in the media. He expected to be appreciated for his work, and in that ambition, he forgot to support his wife, who was seeking help from a man who had believed in her talent. A heartbroken and struggling Mahima was shocked to know her husband was using her to climb up the ladder of fame. She realized it was never about her talent but his selfishness to prove that he could do something out of love for cricket, and sadly, Mahima became collateral in his path to prove his father wrong. A dejected Mahima left with a heavy heart and no support system in sight; she was on the verge of being removed from the team because of bad performances.
What did Mahendra’s mother suggest?
Mahendra’s mother could sense the tension between her son and the daughter-in-law, and as a parent, she began to politely ask him questions about what led to the friction between the two. As an insecure man, he began to complain about his concerns about her behavior and how he felt he was under her shadow and not the other way around. As a mother, her only advice to him was not to believe everyone was happy based on a brief interaction with them. She also gave an example of his brother, who seemed like he had it all, but she was aware he was struggling with fame and being relevant. Since his greed for success and fame never ended, she was aware her other son was always upset because he set unrealistic ambitions for himself.
Mahendra believed all of this to be untrue. She finally reminded him that all she did in her life was support her husband and children, yet in return, she never expected anything but for all of them to remain happy in their endeavors and decisions. This statement had a profound effect on Mahendra, and he began to see the situation in a different light.
What happened during a crucial match?
As the days went by, Mahendra slowly understood the mistake he made by abandoning his wife when she needed him the most. Mahima, on the other hand, was having a hard time during the match as she experienced a concussion due to a fastball, and she had to leave the match for a while to recover. Since this was a crucial game, she was expected to perform, but everything was falling apart. Mahendra tried to be a pillar of support by giving her suggestions, but she could not trust his intentions anymore. As a person who was on her own, she wanted to forge her path and bear the brunt of the results. Every cricketer, along with the physical support, requires emotional support as well. Since she was getting nothing from Mahendra, she wanted to decide for herself how she would play the game once she felt better. Since her team wasn’t faring well, she was asked to go and bat once again to save them an embarrassing loss.
Did Mahendra and Mahima patch up?
Mahima was further struggling on the ground, and the state team coach was not helping her at all, which began to bother Mahendra. He felt helpless, as there was no way he could go out there and request that she calm down. This was his way of showcasing his support, but somehow he was unable to penetrate Mahi’s mind and make her believe he wanted the best for her. As a husband, he came to realize his mistakes and rectify them, but he also knew this moment was about her and not him. At the crucial juncture, as a water girl was sent to send a message from the coach, Mahendra also added his own, which worked like the catalyst, and it led to her team winning.
Mahima had hit a six, in her signature style ever since she began her career as a cricketer. All Mahendra asked her was to believe in herself and not listen to anyone’s advice. She had to believe in herself so that she could do it, which would eventually help her to move forward. These were the words of affirmation she had craved because she knew she had the talent to take the team to victory. It was the lack of support from Mahendra that made her falter. It proves that the coach and team members play a role in making the team a better one, but players also need backing from their families to help them reach the end goal of becoming accomplished. Mahima was happy to watch her husband come back to his senses and work towards her betterment. They made up, and ever since, it was only the beginning of her life as a cricketer.
Was Mahi selected for the Indian cricket team?
Mahi was selected for the Indian cricket team, and it was the biggest news for her and Mahendra. Even though Mahendra could not make it, he never felt insecure anymore since he was happy for his wife and genuinely believed she deserved the accolades coming for her. Just like his mother stated, he wanted to stay away from the limelight and be a silent supporter. His father could not understand Mahendra’s decision to remain away from the press, but he only said to just feel the emotion and not overthink it. Mahendra probably wanted to process the feeling and not go overboard with Mahima’s success. He also asked his father to maybe look around and think hard about the support system.
Mahima ends up crediting her success to her husband, just like last time, but this time she made sure to talk about how Mahendra guided her all this time. This also opens the discussion of successful women either having a very emotionally supportive husband or being alone; there was never a middle ground. Having said that, this move by Mahendra proves it was never hard for a man to support their spouse if they don’t let their insecurity take over their brains and hearts. All Mahendra had to do was offer her some heartfelt words of encouragement, which made all the difference. Even if the genders were reversed, Mahima would be the strongest support system Mahendra could have asked for. The scene on the ground could be compared to how Anushka Sharma always shows up for Virat Kohli. We are sure the makers took inspiration from watching the spousal support her partner from the stands and being unapologetic about it.
Mr. and Mrs. Mahi ended with Mahendra’s father slowly understanding the words shared by his son and replacing all the celebrity photographs with pictures of the family who were his support system, and he was happy to have them around. He was also proud of what his son and daughter-in-law had achieved for themselves, which was more reason for him to get rid of old photos on the wall. It was endearing to watch men unlearning many of their mistakes and embracing new things around them for the sake of happiness. They had begun to treat women with respect, and it was a welcome change. It was smart of the writers to add layers about how men tend to forget the kind of support system women can have, and they continue doing that without expecting anything in return. The film proved that, be it a housewife or a career-oriented woman, spouses need not take their partners for granted, as it would increase the bitterness.
The movie ended with Mahendra working as a coach for young children as his first student, his wife Mahima was a success story. He realized imparting knowledge to the new generation of kids was his calling and would want to contribute to making world-class cricketers.