There’s something quietly revolutionary about A Nice Indian Boy. It’s a romantic comedy that does all the things you want a rom-com to do, the meet-cute, the tension, the emotional payoff. While the movie does all of this, it also brings something rare to the table: heart without clichés, representation without box-ticking, and cultural specificity that feels lived-in, not just decorative. It’s warm, funny, and refreshingly real, a modern love story wrapped in a distinctly South Asian (and proudly queer) package
Karan Soni, best known to many as the hyper-enthusiastic cab driver from Deadpool, steps into the spotlight here not just as the lead but also as a producer. He plays Naveen, a sweet but painfully awkward Indian-American man navigating family expectations and personal insecurities. His parents (played beautifully by Zarna Garg and Harish Patel) are keen to see him married off, especially after a picture-perfect wedding for his sister Arundhathi (Sunita Mani) and her doctor husband. The only complication? Naveen is gay, and while his parents technically accept it, they don’t want to talk about it, let alone meet any of his potential partners.
Then comes Jay (Jonathan Groff, yes, that Jonathan Groff, of Hamilton and Mindhunter fame), a charming and emotionally open photographer who was adopted by an Indian family and embraces the culture with genuine warmth. Their connection is immediate, a quiet spark during a hospital photo day, a connection during temple and the relationship that follows is full of humour, heartache, and hesitant steps toward vulnerability.
Soni and Groff have a chemistry that’s quietly electric. They’re not playing up rom-com tropes for laughs, instead, they’re building something that feels tender and tangible. Watching Naveen try (and fail) to leave a non-cringeworthy voicemail for a date, or try to coach Jay on how to act around his parents (“like you’re interviewing for the Presidency”), is both hilarious and emotionally honest. And when the real cracks in their relationship start to show, like Naveen’s reluctance to acknowledge their love publicly, the film isn’t afraid to go deeper.
What really makes A Nice Indian Boy stand out is its refusal to gloss over the hard stuff. Writers Eric Randall and Madhuri Shekar don’t just want to tell a cute love story, they want to explore the real emotional work of loving someone. Jay doesn’t just want romance; he wants belonging. He wants a partner who won’t hide him. And he’s honest about it in a way that’s refreshing to see onscreen. As he puts it: “We’re all a little embarrassed by the bigness of love.”
Director Roshan Sethi (co-creator of The Resident) strikes the perfect tone, light enough for laughs, heartfelt enough for gut-punch moments, and grounded in a community rarely seen on screen in this way. There’s a beautiful balance between modern queer identity and traditional Indian family dynamics, and not a single character is reduced to a stereotype.
The supporting cast is excellent across the board. Zarna Garg, making her feature debut after becoming a viral stand-up sensation, is hilarious and heartbreaking as Naveen’s mother, while Harish Patel continues to prove he’s one of the most quietly compelling actors in any ensemble. Sunita Mani brings complexity and spark to what could’ve been a simple “supportive sister” role.
And yes, if you’re a Bollywood fan, there are references to Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ), used not just as a wink to the audience, but as emotional shorthand for the kind of sweeping, heart-on-sleeve love story Jay believes in, and that Naveen has to learn to embrace.
In a sea of formulaic streaming rom-coms, A Nice Indian Boy stands out as something genuinely special. It’s a film full of joy, identity, awkwardness, dancing, vulnerability, and big, brave love. More than just a great queer love story, it’s a great love story, period. The film gets a full 5 stars from me, and is essential viewing for 2025.
A Nice Indian Boy is now showing in Australian cinemas.
