Movie: Pehlwaan

Cast: Suneil Shetty, Kichcha Sudeepa, Aakanksha Singh, Sushant Singh

Direction: S. Krishna

Both Suniel Shetty and Kichcha Sudeepa are seen as extremely strong and massy actors who are macho in their own rights. So when Suniel and Kichcha Sudeepa united for a movie about wrestling called ‘Pehlwaan’, everyone thought it would be about machismo and heroism. So does the story of Pehlwaan explore all the nitty gritties of the subject matter? Let’s read and explore.

Our industry has seen several films based on the principle and concept of Guru-shishya and family values. Pehlwaan is just another addition to the already told stories earlier.

The story is about a man Sarkar (Suniel Shetty) who discovers an orphan child, Krishna. Out of humanity, he decides to help Krishna in every way possible. In the process, he realizes that the little one has immense potential in the art of wrestling and if trained and groomed the right kinda way, he has the potential to even beat the best in the business. So a motivated and determined Sarkar, who tries to foresee the future and wishes to complete his own dreams of ruling the roost in the art of wrestling, decides to make Krishna the medium, as he wishes the child well and sees a good future for the child. Thus, Sarkar decides to adopt Krishna and train and groom him for the big challenge.

Krishna too, on the other hand, gives his best and puts forward his best hard work when it comes to training so that he can complete the dreams and aspirations of his father. Throughout the film, there are several sequences shown, where Krishna is seen intensely training under Sarkar’s guidance and mentorship and giving his best. The relationship between Sarkar and Krishna is shown in such a light that viewers are able to differentiate between when it’s a heart to heart interaction between a father who is extremely close to his son and when it is an interaction between a mentor and his disciple who dreams and desires for his disciple to conquer the world of wrestling. However, amidst all this when everything is hunky-dory, things turn complicated when Sarkar feels Krishna is losing focus as Krishna has fallen in love and wants to marry Rukmini (Aakanksha Singh) and eventually gets married. Sarkar disapproves the marriage. An angry and furious Sarkar feels Rukmini’s distraction will lead Krishna away from his goals and aspirations and eventually that will be detrimental to all the effort put into the art of wrestling in all these years. This is a major reason for a rift between Sarkar and Krishna, and a furious Sarkar makes Krishna swear not to ever wrestle again. Post this, Krishna’s future wrestling strands don’t go the way he would have liked to and that unsettles him a little and his peaceful life. It’s of utmost relevance to see the film to understand how the entire transition takes place from phase to phase. The climax involves a good part where Krishna is seen paying his homage and respect to none other than Rocky Stallone or Sylvester Stallone.

IWMBuzz Verdict: It was extremely nice and a breath of fresh air to see Suniel Shetty, aka Anna, on the silver screen once again. His action and strong screen presence is well supported by Kichcha Sudeepa and his work. The film almost looks like a culmination of all the martial arts and fight-oriented films ever made in the industry. But the good part of the movie where director S. Krishna should be credited for is the fact that he manages to establish the emotional bond and connect as well, which is of utmost importance in any story. The direction and the screenplay is above average and the fight sequences looked well choreographed. But what ‘Pehlwaan’ misses is the ‘newness and rawness’ factor as it is a subject delved into multiple times by multiple people, and in today’s time, where ‘content is king’, no old and used content can be fed in and that’s what looks to be proving costly for Pehlwaan. Watch it for Anna, aka Suniel Shetty. However, don’t go into the theatres expecting a ‘Dangal’, as you will be thoroughly disappointed then.

2.5/5