Stories about pioneers and that too women are a treat to watch. Breaking the glass ceiling requires nerves of steel. Be it the TV serial ‘Udaan’, or ‘Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker’, or the Marathi movie ‘Anandi Gopal’ which profiles the life of the first woman doctor in India, these works are inspirational and riveting at the same time.
Aiming for the same is ‘The Exchange’, the first Netflix original production from Kuwait. Set in the late 80s, ‘The Exchange’ is a fascinating tale of two women who decide to enter the male-dominated world of a stock exchange in Kuwait and make a mark for themselves.
Munira (a fabulously cast Mona Hussain) and Farida (Rawan Mahdi) come from affluent families. While Farida is a divorcee and has a daughter, Munira is single. For various reasons, Munira and Farida end up at the stock exchange and battle male chauvinism, mansplaining and condescending behaviour. Sometimes they are foes, sometimes friends. Whether or not they emerge victorious is what ‘The Exchange’ is about.
While it is refreshing to watch a story from Kuwait, it is not riveting enough to sustain our interest. Nothing comes as a surprise. There are no twists ‘n’ turns to keep you engaged.
The well-edited six-part series is mounted on a lavish scale giving us a peek into the lifestyle of the well-heeled. The production quality is world-class. The costumes, especially of Munira and Farida are top-notch. However, all these pluses are done in by a single but major shortcoming, a weak screenplay.
The writing by Adam Sobel, Anne Sobel and Nadia Ahmad fails to connect when it is not confounding. Sometimes, the focus is on Farida’s personal life, sometimes it shifts to her and Munira’s travails at the workplace and sometimes to the then prevailing socio-economic scenario of Kuwait.
While all these factors are necessary to tell a story they have not been woven in an adequate measure and proper order. We have no idea as to why these two women choose to work at a stock exchange of all the places. Moreover, they are pros at their work right from Day 1. The discrimination they face doesn’t go beyond the absence of washrooms for women and other regular biases by male colleagues. The male characters depicted here have a patriarchal mindset but are not much villainous. Also, the journey of Munira and Farida seems to be from powerful women to more powerful women rather than starting from scratch and ending up empowered.
Mona Hussain and Rawan Mahdi deliver a stellar performance. They have got into the skin of the character. The onscreen chemistry is sizzling. But the story doesn’t allow them to rise beyond the flamboyance and swagger. While most of the men in the drama can be seen sporting dishdasha all the time, the women are clad in Western outfits designed by Dalal Al-Hajri. Not complaining though. Among the male cast, only Hussain Almahdi as Saud leaves an impression.
‘The Exchange’, directed by Karim ElShennawi and Jasem ALMuhanna, suffers from what I call a ‘premise-to-plot syndrome’ – a good and promising idea that fails to fructify the way it should have.
Also, the English dubbing is clumsy. So, if you want to watch it, try it with English subtitles and original audio.
You can put your money into this stock listed on Netflix. But do remember, stakes are high, and returns are likely to be low. Gamble at your risk.
