Girls Will Be Girls 4 1/2 stars

In Girls Will Be Girls we find a coming of age story set in India in the Himalaya mountains. In a strict boarding school, Mira has just earned the title and responsibilities of Head Prefect. She has the pressures of keeping her grades up and dealing with a strict mother, but then a new boy arrives at the school that takes an interest in her. It’s a story of discovering desire and romance for the first time from first time writer-director Shuchi Talati. Mira has to be very careful about what she reveals to her mother about the relationship, but the mother takes an interest in the boy’s wellbeing too, setting up a conflict between mother and daughter. It is a well told story done with slow building tension. Both of the young actors were present for the Q & A. It was one of the best movies of the fest I have seen so far.