| Director | Vijaya Mehta |
|---|---|
| Genre | comedy film, drama film |
| Runtime | 120 min |
| Country | India |
The film is an intimate look into the life and manners of the Parsi community, especially those living in the city of Bombay (now Mumbai) in the 1950s and 60s. Phiroj Shah (Naseeruddin Shah) and Pestonjee (Anupam Kher) are close friends. They like to do everything together (and even plan to get married on the same day), even though they are very different in temperament. Phiroj is quiet, thoughtful and indecisive, while Pestonjee (Pesi) is an extrovert. Phiroj is unable to make up his mind about marrying a girl, Jeroo (Shabana Azmi), selected for him by a matchmaker. It is Pesi who ends up marrying her. Phiroj has fallen in love with her, but does not begrudge Pesi his happiness. He decides not to marry, and moves to another city. They keep in touch by mail. Phiroj is extremely delighted to hear that Pesi and Jeroo are expecting a baby. He decides to travel to Bombay to visit them. During his visit, Phiroj learns that the married life of Pesi and Jeroo is not as he had imagined it. Phiroj is horrified to discover that Pesi has a mistress. Jeroo has had a miscarriage which Pesi later informs him, when confronted by Phiroj about his mistress, was actually an abortion due to Jeroo's fear of dying in childbirth as her mother had. He is saddened by how Jeroo has changed. She is no longer the pretty girl she was, but appears cantankerous and uncaring. Both she and Pesi are unhappy in their marriage. Phiroj resolves not to meet them, but mentally is unable to keep himself aloof. All three carry on with their unhappy lives until Pesi's sudden death. Finally, Phiroj discovers that he cannot help Jeroo. Soona (Kiron Kher), Pesi's mistress whom Phiroj had thought of as a loose woman, ends up paying for the funeral which Phiroj repays to her as he cannot abide the thought that in even his death, Pesi's mistress has a hold on him. In the end, Phiroj realizes that life was not what he imagined it would be and it is everybody's journey in life to find and determine what their own happiness is.