22nd September 2005

Iqbal

Subhash Ghai's 'Search Light Productions' would not have prized a better find. Rave reviews, maverick direction, gripping performances - this is not just what 'IQBAL' has to offer. In fact, Iqbal is Nagesh's finest accomplishment till date.

Iqbal might not have a star hero or a great music director or a lavish producer like what Lagaan had. These really do not prevent Iqbal from reaching the depths of the viewers' hearts.

'IQBAL' is the story of the passion, determination of Iqbal Khan, a Deaf and Dumb youngster born and brought up in typical village. His father, an honest farmer is a man who believes that people waste precious hours in watching cricket, which otherwise would have been engaged in some productive activities. Iqbal's mother is a die hard fan of cricket who never misses a chance to watch a cricket match even if she is a pregnant and has to go all the way to the TV set placed in the centre of village to watch the match.

Born to this couple, Iqbal imbibes in himself his mother's penchant for cricket and his father's simplicity and honesty. His frenzy for cricket made him name the buffaloes in his herd after cricketers like Kapil, Kumble, Harbhajan and Irfan. He practices cricket in the fields till luck (in the form of his adorable younger sister) makes him join the Kolipad cricket academy owned by Guruji (Girish Karnad). But the happiness doesn't last longer. Misfortune sends him back to his initial learning place - the fields. Determined he is, Iqbal finds a new master in Mohit ( Naseeruddin Shah). The rest of the story is about how Iqbal manages to find a place for himself in the Indian cricket team. I would not prefer to reveal any thing more about the story since you need to watch the movie on the screen and watch the passion as it unfolds.

The path from the paddy fields to the international cricket field is not as rosy as it presents itself to be. Nagesh has excellently depicted the obstacles Iqbal had to face, the politics involved, the passion of fire, the rock-strong determination with which Iqbal reached the zenith.

The movie is a classic which very clearly depicts the subtle emotions - the emotions of a deaf and dumb person who hides himself from his father in a small space in a hay stack just to read a copy of The Sportstar, the emotions of a doting sister who carefully refurbishes the shoes of her brother thrown into fire by an angry father, the emotions of a mother who could choose to go to her son when she had to choose one - either husband or son, the emotions of a former cricketer whose position had been 'offer'ed to someone else in the team just because he held his faith in his 'Guruji'.

It needed great actors to emote these feelings on the screen. Shreyas Talpade was more than apt to the role of Iqbal. He never lets any one show sympathy towards him. He makes you realize after coming out of the theatre that you forgot to show some sympathy towards him. He really never needed that. All he wanted was a good coach and moral support from his father. After he got those, nothing could stop him. All the actors in the movie are relatively new save Naseer and Girish. But these new faces never let the connoisseurs shadow them. Shreyas Talpade has definitely put up an excellent performance but it is in fact Shwetha who played his younger sister in the movie who steals the show.

The movie in fact defies all your expectations and it is the publicity of the movie that really astonishes me. There were many friends of me who really did not know that there was a movie named Iqbal ( which even received a four star rating in the Times of India move reviews )that has been playing in the city for four weeks. Well if you are apprehensive of watching a movie that has very less publicity, take my word for it, you will never be cheated of your money. Iqbal has more to offer…

Syam Krishna.K
Syam_Krishna@infosys.com

More My Movie experiences:

Purnesh - Grahanam
Sudhindra - Super
Vijay - Aparichitudu
Madhav - Aparichitudu
Hazaraon Kwaishein Aisi
Swades
Shyam - Black
Sai - Anand
Rohit - Anand & Veer Zaara
Jaya Prakash - 7GBC
Raj - Anand
Purnesh - Anand
Purnesh - The Village
Sriram - Gudumba Shankar
Purnesh - Gharshana
Purnesh - Lakshya
Purnesh - Yuva
Leenesh - Yuva
Kis - Lakshmi Narasimha
Indian Pride - Tagore
Raj - Boys
Phani - Gangotri
Phani - Khadgam
Vikram - CKR
BKR - Indra (Singapore)
Ram - Indra (Dubai)
Ranjeet - Idiot
Rahul - Indra
King Koduri - Indra
Srilakshmi Katragadda - Mitr: My Friend