Little Zizou

About the film

Little Zizou is a 2008 Indian drama film written and directed by Sooni Taraporevala. Little Zizou is a comedy about how two battling Mumbai families finally come to terms.

Little Zizou won the Rajat Kamal in the National Film Award for Best Film on Family Welfare category at the 56th National Film Awards.

Plot

Xerxes, 'Little Zizou' as he is known, is an eleven-year-old football-crazy Parsi boy whose fervent wish is that his idol, Zinedine Zidane, visit Mumbai. His older brother Artaxerxes, or Art, is a talented artist whose wild fantasies come to life in surprising ways. Their father Khodaiji is a self-proclaimed protector-of-the-faith who thrives on the attentions (and donations) of hopeful believers.

Art burns with unrequited love for Zenobe, the elder daughter of Khodaiji's arch rival, Boman Pressvala, a free thinking newspaper publisher. And to the extreme displeasure of their other daughter, Xerxes adores the maternal Mrs Pressvala. But the real fireworks begin when Pressvala writes a scathing critique of Khodaiji and public reaction is widespread. As the two households fight, life becomes complicated. Liana (the younger daughter) finally lets Xerxes be her friend. Khodaiji shuts down Presswala's office. Presswala gets a heart attack. Whether Khodaiji reforms his ways and if Pressvala lets Art court Zenobe forms the rest of the story.

Reception

Shubhra Gupta of Indian Express praised the performances of cast and called it "a film to be savoured".

Key details