June 1983 is when the television came home. A bunch of us ragamuffins sat around in disbelief as Kapil’s devils went on to lift the Prudential World Cup. I can still remember the sound of fireworks going off on that balmy Kolkata night on the 25th of June. That victory also taught a nation struggling with post-independence dissonance to start believing in itself. The race of the Indian cricket team to the pinnacle of cricketing glory started then. In fact, I like to believe that it was Kapil’s record-breaking knock of 175 not out vs Zimbabwe at Tunbridge Wells that turned around the fortunes of a nation that had won only against East Africa in any prior outing in the tournament.
#KabirKhan’s #83themovie released in theatres last week. The remote is of no use in the theatres… Pass_Me_The_Remote reviews a trip of sporting nostalgia that is bound to leave you overwhelmed with emotion. 83 is the story of one man’s determination to win against all odds; all through the film Kapil is clearly the underdog but knows his rightful place and yet remains reserved. The focus of the film is solely on the cricket - there are no back stories, no emotional build-ups of the little boy growing up in Haryana and no undue controversies that the game harbours.
#KabirKhan utilises still photographs from the original team extremely well and manages to seamlessly integrate them into the narrative. The cameo with the passports of the original heroes is telling. I found the cameos of real life Kapil as a spectator and #MohinderAmarnath as his father is a tad irritating but as I reflected on it, this is a true recreation of what happened 39 years ago. The emphasis is on what happened on the cricket ground and is based on meticulous research - scores, ball-by-ball action and the photographs. Anything that happens off the ground is not critical! Just look at it as fodder for creating the theatrical experience!
#83themovie is owned by #RanveerSingh. He does not just emote; he transforms into Kapil paaji and how! The elaborate hair-do, the prosthetic teeth, the gait, the bowling action, the leap and the delivery, the accent and the smile, the mannerisms and the Rapidex-classes language all come together to leave a lasting impact! #DeepikaPadukone is a casting coup as #RomiDev with an eighties hairdo but does not have much to do! As much as the story is a classic underdog story, the key theme around which the narrative is woven is that of earning respect. Even the Indians including the cricket administration did not believe that the team was capable of bringing back the cup! In my opinion, what Ranveer gets spot on is the shy, reserved charm broken only by the toothy grin that #KapilDev sports. “What else we are here for” he asks the reporters at the press conference when they ask him if team India was there to win. Off the public glare, the little touch of Kapil wiping off the mud from his boots with the newspaper that wrote off his team, determination writ large on his face is what completes the picture!
There is no elaborate discourse in how Kapil ‘transforms’ into the leader. At best he is an older brother to the team. His lack of proficiency in English is neither denigrated nor ridiculed. Goaded on by Maan Singh, he makes a speech in the bus . The highlight is clearly the purity of the intent and the determination. “Taste the success once, tongue wants more” he says as the rest of the team erupt in good natured laughter. The song playing in the background ironically is from #EkDujeKeLiye where the hero is lamenting that he cannot understand what the heroine is saying in her language!
Director and Producer #KabirKhan gets the casting absolutely right. All the actors play out their roles brilliantly. #PankajTripathi is in his elements as the manager #PRMaSingh, as he battles a system that has booked the return tickets for the team a few days before the final, quite certain that the team will never make it to the finals! #SaqibSaleem as a dignified #MohinderAmarnath is superb. He refuses to let anyone see his tears and this makes the character endearing. The scene where he and Kapil do the laundry in their hotel rooms goes to show how the game that is now a multi-million dollar industry was not even viable in those times. In another scene, Sandhu’s engagement back home gets called off because the family is not well off. In an age when even our youngest of cricketers who are yet to play for the nation are showing off their cars, watches and expensive jewellery, this is quite unfathomable!
#TahirRajBhasin and #Jeeva are also brilliant as they play #SunilGavaskar and #KrishnamachariSrikkanth. As the openers walked in to open the innings with Gavaskar sporting that classic wagger and the swashbuckling Srikkanth clearing his sinuses gave me goosebumps! #BomanIrani as #FarokhEngineer in the commentary box is terrific. #Jeeva and his antics keep you chuckling all through but the highlight of his performance is the one where he hails his Kapil as his “mad captain” and launches into an impromptu speech at the party. #AmmyVirk as #BalwinderSandhu, #HardySandhu as #MadanLal and #ChiragPatil as his father #SandeepPatil form the rest of the cast. #JatinSarna is delectable as the chirpy #YashpalSharma. #NishantDahiya plays #RogerBinny, #DhairyaKarwa is #RaviShastri and #SahilKhattar is #SyedKirmani. Casting #MalcolmMarshall’s son #MaliMarshal is surely a coup of it own; the young man has the same angular run-up and deadly lift and bounce off the wicket!
#KabirKhan and his co-writers #SanjayPuranSinghChauhan and #VarunBala have invested in the research and the nuances. #MaanSingh narrates the story about how British journo #DavidFrith was made to literally “eat his words” after writing off the Indian team. The collage of shots of how the country is united as a nation to support the team is rousing. In a riot-hit town, the patrolling force knocks on the doors of a Muslim family only to check on the score. The soldiers on the border get a reprieve when the Pakistanis defer the shelling to permit them to listen in to the match commentary.
The kid waving the national flag becomes the rallying point for the team as they tear up inside the bus. The kids in a Muslim family try to set the antenna right on the terrace to ensure the family can watch the match. An Indian bartender and the waitress at the pub come together as India coasts to victory. Two factory workers in London give their boss the slip to go watch the finals. And there is also a rather ugly scene where a bunch of racist skinheads clash with bhangra-dhol gang outside the stadium. That’s Kabir Khan for you - no film is complete without the rousing nationalistic sentiment being dialled up! #Pritam’s music could have been better but the song “Lehra do” does give you goosebumps. Editor #NitinBaid and cinematographer #AseemMishra use these visuals very effectively and by the time the team gets the better of the Windies, you are definitely going to get emotional!
Sports movies usually have parallel tracks that reflect conflict of multiple types. It could revolve around family, parents, resources or even sibling rivalry and misunderstanding. This one though has none of that; it is almost as if the makers are so caught up with the story that there is no bandwidth to focus outside the field. While once could therefore say that there aren't too many layers in the narrative, I think this is precisely what they wanted. Even when it comes to the dressing room, it is only the Indian one that is shown ; the Windies dressing room is not shown. In fact the players bear some resemblance and thats the only relevance; the actor playing #VivianRichards is almost a caricature! If you ware paying attention, you will notice the camera cutting to #NeenaGupta who plays Kapil’s mother back in Haryana and the irony of that casting is not lost on you!
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