Polite Society(2023)

PG-13
1h 44m
- Action
- Comedy

Release Date: Apr 28, 2023 | Limited

Ria Khan believes she must save her older sister Lena from her impending marriage. After enlisting her friends' help, she attempts to pull off the most ambitious of all wedding heists in the name of independence and sisterhood.

Releases

Original Release | Apr 28, 2023

Box Office

Results

Opening Weekend US & Canada:
$817,740
Total US & Canada:
$1,595,585
Total International
$1,048,337
Total Worldwide:
$2,643,922

Director & Top Cast

Nida Manzoor
Director

Priya Kansara
Ria

Ritu Arya
Lena

Renu Brindle
Mrs Nawaz

Rekha John-Cheriyan
Mrs Abbas

Seraphina Beh
Clara

Ella Bruccoleri

Alba

Sally Ann

Edith

Jenny Funnell

Ms Spence

Shona Babayemi

Kovacs

Shobu Kapoor

Fatima

Nimra Bucha

Raheela

Sophie Aisling

Mrs Iqbal

Su McLaughlin

Mrs Ahmed

Jeff Mirza

Rafe

Akshay Khanna

Salim Shah

Tia Dutt

Jezah

Ryan Laccohee

Sensei 1

Technical Specifications

Aspect Ratio: 2.39 : 1

Other Details

Country of Origin: United Kingdom

Summaries

Plot Summary

In London, British-Pakistani teenager Ria Khan aspires to become a movie stunt-woman like her idol, Eunice Huthart. Under an alter-ego, "The Fury", Ria creates films of martial arts training with the help of her older sister Lena, who has dropped out of art school and moved back in with their loving but traditional parents, Fatima and Rafe, both of them discouraging Ria's dreams. At school, Ria is inseparable from her friends Clara and Alba, but their disapproving teacher urges her to pursue a more "serious" career. Ria's emails to Eunice about a potential mentor-ship go unanswered, and she is soundly defeated by the school bully Kovacs. The Khan family is invited to an Eid Mubarak soirée by Raheela, the leader of Fatima's social circle of Pakistani mothers, at her lavish mansion. Ria realizes the party has been arranged to find a suitable match for Raheela's son Salim, a successful geneticist, but is unable to stop Lena from agreeing to a date. To Ria's horror, Lena is charmed by Salim and, after a few whirlwind weeks of dating, agrees to marry him and move to Singapore. Despite their parents' support, Ria's refusal to accept Lena's choices, including abandoning her art career, drives the sisters apart. Convinced there must be a more sinister explanation, Ria enlists Clara and Alba's help to spy on Salim. They concoct an elaborate plan to steal his laptop, and Ria distracts him while her friends hack his computer, but they find nothing incriminating. Desperate to sabotage Lena's relationship, Ria lashes out at her friends, and breaks into Salim's bedroom to plant used condoms. She is caught, and confronts Salim with a picture of his first wife, whom he explains died in childbirth. Furious, Lena berates Ria to give up the fantasies that her sister will change her mind about marriage, or that she will ever become a stunt-woman. At odds with her sister and ignored by her friends, Ria gives up martial arts. She visits Raheela to apologize and is dragged into joining her spa day, where Raheela reveals her true colors and tortures Ria with waxing. Fighting off Raheela's staff, Ria stumbles into the mansion's secret lab and discovers that all the eligible women at the Eid party were secretly scanned and tested, and Lena was selected for her fertility. Escaping back home, Ria realizes she cannot convince her family of the truth. She tells Clara and Alba, and together they devise a plan, persuading Kovacs to drive them to the wedding to rescue Lena. Ria distracts the guests with a dance while Clara and Alba, disguised as waiters, sneak past the armed guard at Lena's door. They chloroform Lena and hide her inside a tea trolley, but Raheela captures Ria, and reveals she and Salim plan to impregnate Lena with a clone of Raheela. Forced to return Lena, the friends are locked in the bridal suite as the wedding begins, but Kovacs comes to their rescue and subdues the guard. Taking his gun, Ria holds Raheela at gunpoint and exposes her plan, leading Lena to remember being drugged and tested by Salim, who admits that his first wife died carrying his mother's clone. Raheela seizes the gun but is disarmed by Fatima, as Ria's family and friends fight off the guests. Lena subdues Salim while Ria finally masters a reverse spinning kick to defeat Raheela, and the police arrive as the sisters drive off. Reconciling with Lena, Ria finally receives an encouraging email from Eunice, and the sisters celebrate together.

Storyline

A merry mash up of sisterly affection, parental disappointment and bold action, Polite Society follows martial artist-in-training Ria Khan who believes she must save her older sister Lena from her impending marriage. After enlisting the help of her friends, Ria attempts to pull off the most ambitious of all wedding heists in the name of independence and sisterhood. — Focus Features In London, Ria Khan, a British-Pakistani teenager, dreams of becoming a movie stunt-woman like her idol, Eunice Huthart. Despite facing discouragement from her traditional parents, Ria creates martial arts training films under her alter ego, "The Fury," with the help of her sister, Lena. Ria's teacher and the school bully challenge her aspirations, while her emails to Eunice go unanswered. Lena's decision to marry Salim, whom Ria suspects of having ulterior motives, further strains their relationship. Ria, along with her friends Clara and Alba, secretly spies on Salim but finds nothing incriminating. Frustrated, Ria resorts to desperate measures to sabotage Lena's relationship, but it only deepens the rift between the sisters. Ria's friendships also suffer, and she feels isolated and unsupported. She visits Raheela, who organized the party where Lena and Salim met, and inadvertently stumbles upon a secret laboratory in Raheela's mansion. Ria discovers that the eligible women were tested and chosen for their fertility, with Lena being selected. Unable to convince her family of the truth, Ria confides in Clara and Alba. Together, they hatch a plan to rescue Lena from the wedding. Ria distracts the guests while Clara and Alba infiltrate Lena's room and temporarily incapacitate her. However, Raheela captures Ria and reveals her sinister plan. — Frank Liesenborgs