Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga () is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama film directed by Shelly Chopra Dhar. The screenplay was written by Dhar and Gazal Dhaliwal, with the story inspired by the 1919 novel A Damsel in Distress by P. G. Wodehouse. It stars Anil Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao, and Juhi Chawla, and features Abhishek Duhan, Madhumalti Kapoor, Seema Pahwa, Brijendra Kala, Alka Kaushal and Kanwaljit Singh in supporting roles. Akshay Oberoi and Regina Cassandra make special appearances in the film. The film tells the story of Sweety Chaudhary, a closeted lesbian, and her attempts to come out to her conservative and traditional Punjabi family.
The film is the first collaboration between real-life father and daughter, Anil Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor and marks the Bollywood debut of Regina Cassandra. It was released worldwide on 1 February 2019. The screenplay was selected by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for its library's Core Collection.
Plot
A young Punjabi woman, Sweety Chaudhary, is under pressure from her traditional family to marry. She meets a young woman named Kuhu and Kuhu's brother Raza at a wedding. A year passes. In Delhi, Sahil Mirza is a playwright though not very successful, and his father, a famous film producer, thinks he should give up being a playwright. Sweety sees a rehearsal of his latest play and remarks that it is amusing but the romance is superficial. A man comes chasing her, and Sahil helps her flee. She escapes while Sahil fights the man, and Sahil accidentally hits a policeman. At the police station, Sahil learns that the man is Sweety's brother Babloo, and they live in Chaudhary Manor, Moga, Punjab. Sahil wants to see Sweety again and decides to write his next play in Moga. He is joined by Chatro, a caterer and enthusiastic amateur actress.
Sweety and Babloo's single father, Balbir Chaudhary, runs Chaudhary Garments, a clothing company. He actually wanted to become a cook, but his mother Beeji insists men do not belong in the kitchen. Babloo claims that Sweety has been going to Delhi to see a Muslim boy, so she must not be allowed to leave the house. Sahil goes to the manor with a letter for her. He sees Balbir cooking. Incorrectly assuming Balbir is the cook, Sahil pays him to give the letter to Sweety. This convinces Balbir that Sahil is Sweety's Muslim boyfriend. Sahil next pays Balbir's employee Chaubey to pass along a message to Sweety, and Chaubey tells Sahil that Sweety loves him though the family disapproves of her dating him because he is Muslim. A few individuals employed by the family bet on who Sweety will marry, with the cook Billauri betting on someone from a matchmaking app. Chaubey bets on “Mr. X”, any unknown outsider. Sweety learns Sahil is holding acting classes, and goes with Beeji and Billauri to the class. Sahil and Chatro are invited to Beeji's birthday party the following day.
At Beeji's party, Chatro bonds with Balbir over cooking. He notices Sahil enjoying the party and tells the others that Sahil is Sweety's Muslim boyfriend. Chaubey hides Sahil and brings him to Sweety's room. Sahil says he loves her. She tells him Babloo lied and she is actually in love with a girl. Sahil is astonished and too drunk to properly respond. The next day, he cancels the acting class. Billauri saw Chaubey taking Sahil to Sweety's room and blackmails him into exchanging their bets. She helps Sweety see Sahil again. Sweety explains that she did not fit in as a child and now she hides the truth about herself. She is in a relationship with Kuhu. Babloo discovered this and tried to stop it, but she continued to see Kuhu in Delhi. She is glad to have a friend to confide in, and Sahil is glad to be her friend. Sweety wants to join Kuhu in London and study art there, yet she does not want to run away from her family. Chatro tells Balbir she is divorced with kids, and feels her kids should be free to marry or not, and to marry whomever they want to, regardless of religion. This inspires Balbir to invite Sahil to dinner and announce Sweety's engagement to him, which Babloo encourages.