In A Nice Indian Boy’s ending, Jay and Naveen get their dream Bollywood wedding after a whole lot of ups and downs. Unlike your typical rom-com, the film doesn’t go from meet-cute to conflict and then love right at the end. It instead focuses more on the family dynamic in Naveen’s life after he introduces Jay into it. It’ll definitely leave you in tears, because you don’t have to be gay to understand Naveen or Jay’s feelings, but you also get to see Naveen’s parents’ side of things from a deeper place that gives you two sides of a picture that’s often painted with just one color. A Nice Indian Boy begins with the wedding of Naveen’s elder sister, Arundhati, who looks to be delighted for her arranged marriage. Meanwhile, though Naveen has come out to his parents, he struggles with his dating life, and while he dreams of the big Indian wedding, like Arundhati’s, he’s pretty sure he’ll never get it. The movie then shifts to 6 years later; Naveen’s a doctor and still single. But will he get his dream romance? And will it be as dreamy as he hopes it’ll be? Let’s find out.
Spoiler Alert
Why Do Jay and Naveen Break Up?
A Nice Indian Boy is divided into 5 segments, and you’d imagine that the big romantic gesture comes in the final act, but it doesn’t. Naveen and Jay first meet under the bells of a Ganesha temple. While they don’t interact here, when Jay is asked to be the photographer at Naveen’s hospital, he recognizes the latter and asks him out immediately. Now, I know this all sounds super cute, but Jay’s a White man asking Naveen to go see the Bollywood movie DDLJ. You best believe this feels at least a little bit sus, but it’s not all as bad as it seems. No, Jay isn’t a fetishizing White man; he simply grew up in an Indian household after being adopted by desi parents who were already quite old, and have since passed. At first Naveen is skeptical about Jay, but soon enough, he falls for him because they’re complete opposites but somehow get each other. It is actually a picture of Jay and his family that makes him feel connected to the guy. Now everything makes sense, you know?
Now, this is Naveen’s first ever big relationship, but he doesn’t tell his family about it. I mean, it’s one thing to say you’re gay, but another to bring home a White boyfriend who also happens to vape when he’s nervous. One fine day, Arundhati’s husband, Manish, happens to see Jay and Naveen together. Naveen panics and calls Jay a friend, which hurts his feelings. But Naveen fixes it all by essentially proposing to Jay in front of their friends, making for a really sweet moment for them but a really difficult situation for Naveen. While he definitely feels like Jay’s the one for him, he doesn’t know how to break the news to his parents. In the middle of this, Arundhati makes a call to Naveen, but he doesn’t pick up. The next thing we know, he’s got to introduce his White “Indian” boyfriend to his family, which makes him way too nervous. But the real problem at this meeting turns out to be a spiteful Arundhati, who starts finding fault in everything between Naveen and Jay because she would’ve never been able to bring home a White man. Her anger is understandable, but in truth, she’d never break down Naveen’s armor that way if she hadn’t been going through something herself. But, unfortunately, by the end of the evening, Jay leaves the house because he can’t accept Naveen lying about everything, and Arundhati tells the family that she’s separated from Manish and they’re going to get divorced.
Jay tells Naveen that he needs to first accept his own fate and realize that he’s not as pathetic as he thinks he is. They break up, and Naveen gets super drunk and comes home to find Arundhati waiting for him. Again, he tells her something hurtful, but you know how siblings are; the next day, they find comfort in each other and admit they were both wrong. Arundhati tells Naveen that she can’t stay in a loveless marriage like their parents, but she shouldn’t have sabotaged his love story for it.
Eventually, Naveen makes a grand gesture for Jay by singing “Tujhe Dekha Toh Yeh Jaana Sanam” for Jay to make him realize that he’s actually all in. Jay’s always been the dramatic one, but Naveen finally decides to put himself out there for Jay after the bells at the temple give him the sign he needed—Jay is the one for him.
What Happens Between Naveen and His Family?
The second half of the movie shifts focus from Jay and Naveen to Naveen’s parents. Naveen feels like his dad is ashamed of him, and that his mom is with his dad out of obligation. While prepping for the wedding, he tells his dad that there’s an invitation with his name on it, but he doesn’t have to show up if he feels ashamed. Naveen doesn’t even wait to hear what his dad has to say. In the meanwhile, their mum tells Arundhati that she should adjust with Manish and figure things out. Arundhati lashes out at her, and it all just escalates into a big mess. But, finally, their mom tells them that she and her husband love each other wholeheartedly, and they may have met on the day of their engagement, but their love grew every day and never stopped growing. She tells Naveen that he simply came out and ran off to do his own thing, never once checking in on his parents, who had to deal with such a unique thing. She tells him that her biggest fear is that he’ll leave them behind and never turn back.
On the other hand, Naveen’s dad visits Jay’s exhibition to clear his mind and understand Jay a little bit. Just like his son, it’s the picture of Jay with his Indian parents that really touches his heart. Like father, like son, eh? At home, while cutting veggies, Jay muses about how Naveen said that it’s always been his dad who’s done the cooking at home. Naveen’s dad says that his dream was to become a chef, but his own dad gave him a scar to remember his whole life that he can never do such a thing. Jay tells him he should tell Naveen that story. Naveen’s dad then shows Jay a painting of Ganesha that Naveen once made. He tells Jay that his son’s always surprised him, but he knows that he has wonderful taste. With that, he gives Jay his blessing, accepting him into the family and showing him how much he truly cares about Naveen. Naveen’s dad even puts dates in the korma, just like Jay suggested, making it all a perfect grand gesture, just as Jay likes it.
During A Nice Indian Boy’s ending, it’s time for a grand wedding and a beautiful speech from Naveen’s mom. The wedding itself is picture perfect, with Arundhati reading out their vows. Naveen’s mom makes a humorous speech after the wedding. She talks about how she couldn’t cook when she first married her husband, and she made him the worst food possible, but it was he who took over after a week, cooking up a feast quietly. She talks about how they then grew fond of each other, had their kids, but most importantly, about how she was scared for her gay son, that he might be lonely. She talks about how, as life goes on, love keeps growing and will never stop. They may not express it to each other or to the kids, but Naveen’s parents have all the love in the world. In the end, Naveen’s mom tells Arundhati that she’s realized that she and her husband are really lucky, and not everyone can be as fortunate, basically showing her that she’ll be with her through the divorce and that she doesn’t expect her to adjust. The movie ends with a Bollywood dance number for Jay on “Jalebi Baby,” giving us the ultimate happy ending for Naveen and Jay. But, this is only the beginning of the rest of their life.
