‘Dangal’ is not the “all-time-classic” many reviews are making it out to be but…

Let’s get the obvious out of the way. ‘Dangal’ is a good film and it deserves to be watched!

The film narrates the true story of an unfulfilled wrestler (Mahavir Singh Phogat) who is unable to give up his aspiration of winning an International Gold and obsesses on living his dream through a son but gets four daughters instead (Geeta and Babita Singh Phogat and their younger siblings). After a brief period of being resigned to his fate, he realizes that even his daughters can achieve his dream (in fact in a manner that’s a little too hurried and almost entirely covered in the trailers of the film). What happens next forms the rest of the story.

‘Dangal’ is so authentic, it’s almost as if you’re there. The tiny nuances of life in Haryana, the language, the lower-middle-class lifestyle, the family home and its surroundings, the deeply entrenched patriarchy, the jeers and sneers from the ‘samaaj’, the neglect towards sports in India, the father’s terror, the actual fight sequences, it is all impeccably real! It would be wrong to call ‘Dangal’ a ‘sports movie’. We attribute a certain set of connotations to that genre and view things accordingly.

It would also be preposterous to compare ‘Dangal’ to ‘Sultan’ just because they have wrestling as a common theme.

By that logic, almost no film in Bollywood has been original given how a love story has been at the core of most of them. ‘Dangal’ is much more than a wrestling film or a sports film, it’s a multidimensional tale of a family, of a father and his daughters, of sacrifice, struggle and success.

(Spoilers in this paragraph) Thankfully, unlike ‘M S Dhoni’, ‘Dangal’ is not a hagiography. Phogat is imperfect and the film does not shy away from highlighting that, at least in the first half. Those imperfections are what make the first half so likeable. The immaculately cast young girls are endearing yet fierce and make the proceedings fun. Besides, the talented child artist who plays Phogat’s nephew keeps the laughs going. Even in the second half, we see Mahavir struggling with being able to let go and feeling envious as a result of being replaced by a new coach. A special mention to the scenes that depict the fight betwen Mahavir and Geeta and the wrestling match right at the end, especially the slow motion shot of Geeta tossing her Australian opponent upside down on her way to India’s first Gold medal for a female wrestler at the Commonwealth Games 2010.

However ‘Dangal’ has some glaring contrasts. It is unabashedly for women’s empowerment, the whistles will go off for the women in this movie, I couldn’t help feel a lot of sadistic pleasure when Geeta and Babita were beating boys to pulp, it’s a rare sight and elicits some rarer emotions! However the film is not so much for child empowerment, given how Mahavir forces his kids into living his dream.

One of the social media jokes going around said ‘Aamir said in Dangal that his daughters can also fulfil his dream but forgot 3 Idiots where he said no parents should force their children to live their dream’.

You could perhaps forgive that in the name of being true to the real story and well — the quest for perfection amongst films and actors’ choices remaining elusive yet again! Additionally, even though the second half admirably takes on rather uncomfortable nuances between Mahavir’s and Geeta’s relationship, the film stretches its intent to prove Mahavir as the perennial saviour who’s always right! This is where some of the disconnect begins. Soon, a shoddy, almost laughable coach is introduced and the nuance is lost. Even though the climactic fight is spellbinding, the climax around Mahavir is too unbelievable thus leaving the viewer a little unfulfilled and a little distant from the emotional peak that could’ve been attained at the end. Surely there could’ve been other ways to prove that kids can move on from their parents. Plus, Mahavir’s personal quest for glory subtly gets merged into nationalistic pride and that seems contrived. And if being forced to stand for the national anthem before the movie wasn’t enough, the same cosmetic patriotism is enforced once again at the end.

That apart, despite his domination of his children, Mahavir comes across as a fascinating character. The intent with which he fights the whole world (a murky, pushy one in Haryana at that) and pushes his daughters towards excellence, while risking their own hatred and making several sacrifices along the way, is inspiring! And who else but the sensational Aamir Khan to play him! India’s finest lead actor without a doubt, Aamir ceases to exist and Mahavir takes over. With 2 years of undivided attention to this film, months spent mastering the Haryanvi accent, more months spent gaining a crazy amount of weight and then six months to lose it and form a super sculpted body for a section in the movie that barely lasts 7 minutes, Aamir proves his commitment and madness for his craft yet again. He owns each scene and brings a subtle vulnerability beneath his tough exterior. With ‘3 Idiots’ India’s first 200 crore movie and ‘PK’ India’s 1st 300 crore movie as well as all-time highest grossing blockbuster, Aamir has proven time and again that true excellence can defeat Salman’s braindead masculinity and get commercial success as well as critical acclaim!

This is perhaps as much Geeta Phogat’s film as it is Mahavir’s. And you can’t help feel sorry for Babita, given how committed and loyal she is. Played by the extremely talented Sanya Malhotra, Babita is overshadowed by Fatima Sana Shaikh’s Geeta. Best remembered for her role as the cute girl from ‘Chachi 420’, Shaikh plays her part with confidence. Sakshi Tanwar is a revelation and grinds her teeth into Mahavir’s wife’s character with such aplomb that memories of ‘Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii’ will appear like a distant nightmare. All child artists are amazing and RJ Aparshakti Khurrana (Ayushman Khurrana’s brother) who plays the grown up nephew efficiently injects a lot of humour into the proceedings. Special points to Mukesh Chhabra for the unique casting of all actors!

The trailer of ‘Jagga Jasoos’ that comes before the film starts is spellbinding. Anurag Basu creates yet another fantasy world remiscent of ‘Barfi’ and I can’t wait to watch this film in April 2017…Back to ‘Dangal’, Pritam’s music is super! The title track is a rage and will raise your adrenaline each time it hits you in Daler Mehndi’s trademark voice. ‘Haanikarak Bapu’ needs to be applauded for its lyrics. Arijit Singh’s undernoticed ‘Naina’ will move many to tears. Making an unimpressive home, tiny lanes and a wrestling arena appear engaging is tough and the cinematography deserves special mention for that. The action choreography during the wrestling matches is extremely impressive, you will walk out reasonably educated on the sport of wrestling. At 2 hours 49 minutes, the editing could perhaps have been a little crisper! Director Nitesh Tiwari whose last film was the colossal bore that could have been the Election Commission’s official advertisement (‘Bhoothnath Returns’), takes giant strides as a storyteller by not only crafting an engaging tale but also knowing how to make a good story commercially successful!

All in all, ‘Dangal’ isn’t perfect and it is also not the “all-time-classic” many reviews are making it out to be but it will keep you hooked and you shall go home with a pleasant feeling, one that hasn’t been very common at the movies for quite a while!

3.5/5