When a few biopics will fail to show results at the box office, the trend will die down. When filmmaker Vikram Bhatt was asked about Bollywood and the trend, he said it is a result of mob behaviour. Akshay Kumar’s “Bell Bottom, which is said to be based on a true story minted Rs 50.58 crore at the box office at a time when occupancy in cinema halls was less than 50%. These films are not just a celebration for the personalities that have been hiding in plain sight but lucrative and instant subjects to relate to for the audience and a moneybag for the filmmakers, at least that’s what recent releases have shown us. With the medium, like films and shows, new generation will get to know about the important events of the past,” he told IANS. It’s a positive sign that more and more filmmakers are coming up with films based on reality. “Cinema and art should always reflect the society. Film historian SMM Ausaja considers it a “positive sign” for Bollywood. With the influx of more and more such films, it has become a trend to weave narratives about unusual events concerning regular people. The common factor about these films is they are all stories seeped in everyday flavour, narrating inspiring stories of an ordinary man who triumph in extraordinary situations. For “Shershaah”, the filmmakers fell back to old war clippings to discover an engaging slice of commoners’ valour. Released digitally, the OTT platform announced that the film that also stars Kiara Advani emerged as the most-watched film on Amazon Prime Video. However, the biopic that made the most noise this year was Sidharth Malhotra’s “Shershaah”. This year we saw the life of an Indian spy unfolding on the screen with “Bell Bottom”, we also became a part of J Jayalalithaa’s journey in “Thalaivi” and likewise, we were there to see the ace badminton player Saina Nehwal being cheered in houses as Parineeti Chopra stepped into her shoes. It appears that lately, directors have been working to simulate reality through varying types of movies.Ī few years back, what began as a mainstream experiment with films, like “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag”, “Padman” or “Neerja”, is finding increasing favour of filmmakers with more and more releases in the genre in 2021. Vicky Kaushal’s National award-winning film, “Uri: The Surgical Strike”, instilled a ‘josh’ among filmmakers which led to the celebration of personalities from all walks of life. They are not a new subject to be experimented upon, but recently, unsung heroes and sports personalities have found space on the big screen amid loud cheers and applause. It’s a shame Pandey never really addresses the controversies associated with Dhoni (barring a fleeting mention of two), or any of the brickbats that came his way, choosing instead to stick to a wholly reverential portrait.In the last few years, the Hindi entertainment industry is flourished biopics or films based on real-life incidents. Neither do we get a sense of his strategy as Team India’s captain, or his relationships with the other players. There are two romances and they come in quick succession (one with Disha Patani’s Priyanka, the other with Kiara Advani’s Saakshi), but these relationships offer little by way of a glimpse under Dhoni’s inscrutable surface. It’s a terrific performance and the key to staying invested in the film even when it trudges down a frankly boring and predictable path in its second half. He makes you root for him as he pursues his goal single-mindedly, refusing to be swept away by small successes or discouraged by obstacles and failures. He makes the character’s frustration palpable, as you watch him trapped in a job as a railway ticket collector in Kharagpur. Sushant Singh Rajput is riveting as Dhoni he’s got the body language and the cricket down pat. Before long, “Mahi maar raha hai” becomes a common refrain in his native Ranchi as he repeatedly whacks the ball out of sight, enthralling the growing crowd, and graduating to bigger things. Yet, he finds supporters in his mother and sister, and a bunch of loyal friends who believe in him. His father (Anupam Kher) insists that he focus on his studies, because a job will help him more than sports. A young Mahi is ‘discovered’ on the school football field by the cricket coach (Rajesh Sharma), who spots his potential.
The early portions, in particular, are pure gold. Pandey’s recreation of life in small-town India feels authentic, as do his characters. Mostly because our protagonist’s journey from a small-town boy with big dreams to India’s star wicketkeeper-batsman is an inspiring one. Special 26 director Neeraj Pandey’s film is a rousing drama. Which is not to say that it doesn’t work.