Apparently Mumbai is famous for its extremely efficient lunchbox delivery system. Why don’t the office workers take their lunch with them in the morning and bring the empty box home at night? The astonishing system of the lunchbox traveling to and from work is documented in the first few minutes of the movie, and that alone is worth watching.
But it comes with a delightful, uplifting story about two lonely souls drifting in the endless stream of Indian humanity.
Ila is a middle-class housewife with one young daughter. He husband has lost all interest in her. But it’s her job as part of the housekeeping to make him lunch every day.
One day, due to some mix-up, the box gets switched and arrives at the desk of a complete stranger, Saajan, an accountant close to retirement. The lunch is delicious. When the box arrives back at Ila’s home, she notices that it must not have been delivered to her husband, since everything was eaten. She decides to send a note to clear up the mystery.
Thus starts the exchange of notes between Ila and Saajan, first about trivialities, then soon getting into their feelings, dreams and life aspirations. Soon the notes in the lunchbox become the highlight of their days, something both live for.
Then there is Auntie, who lives one floor above Ila in her building. They communicate by talking out the window to each other. We never see her and only know her as a voice, but I feel that I know more about the person Auntie and her life, than I know about many cardboard lead characters in many Hollywood movies.
The Lunchbox is delightful storytelling about an exotic land and, to an American, strange customs and a strange work environment.
Wonderful.
Rating *** 1/2
Note: English subtitles. The Indian English is very hard to understand and the characters often switch to native Indian languages.