The game’s up

Nonika Singh

The best part of a small-budget film is that you go with least expectations and the worst part is, rare is a film that surprises you. Badlapur Boys sadly isn’t that rare gem that proves content is the king. Actually, content is not the biggest problem of the film. Rather, it’s a classic case of the spirit is willing but the flesh and the form aren’t. At a time when film stars are vying with each other to buy a kabaddi team, ek film kabaddi par toh banti thi... 

So, here it is. Meet the kabaddi team from a small village, Badlapur in UP, the least of whose problems is its kabaddi team, which of course, creates a record in losing all  the time. Enter Annu Kapoor, the coach to the reigning kabaddi team. Some chance interjections here and there and you know where the film is headed. While the young man Vijay (Nishan Nanaiah), who has learnt most of his game from watching it from the sidelines, is propelled centrestage, the losing team finds its winning touch. Sure we love underdogs winning, but here there are few rather no heart-warming moments that bring a tear or a smile. Even the team’s final victory is diluted by a twist in the tale. 

Actually, the film is sidetracked so often by other peripherals that soon enough attention begins to wane and patience runs thin. The songs, the unwanted love angle and much else stand out like a sore thumb. And even ace actor Annu Kapoor, despite a reasonably competent performance and earnest team of newcomers, can’t lift the film beyond mediocrity. The only time the film grabs eyeballs is when the kabaddi matches are on. Well executed, these keep the excitement going. But all else is contrived and predictable. 

Why the director chose to pad up with extraneous elements is unfathomable. Indeed, his concerns might be sincere and well-meaning. But as these flesh out into a narrative which is as much about a village’s perennial problem of irrigation as about Vijay’s personal tragic loss and of course the sport of kabaddi, the inclination doesn’t find its match in execution.

A film small or big can only work if it’s backed by single-minded resolve to tell a story well. And on this count the film just doesn’t measure up to anything substantial. Skip it, unless you are a kabaddi buff, and then if you are, why would you exchange the real adrenaline rush with its pale reel version? As the maker misses the opportunity to create a befitting ode to the spirited sport, which till recently was un-glorified but is finding its space in the limelight, you too can safely give this one a miss.