Simply putt, engaging golf drama

Parbina Rashid

‘Slum golf is an oxymoron,’ points out boarding-school educated Gaurav to his caddie Pawan Nagre. Pawan, a school dropout, has no clue what oxymoron means. But even if he did, it would not deter him from pursuing his dream — to become a pro golfer. His dream is fuelled by hunger; the hunger to get out of Bharat Nagar, a slum area in Mumbai, and lead a respectable life.

Sujay Sunil Dahake-directorial ‘Slum Golf’ belongs to the ‘rags to riches’ genre that celebrates one’s dream, resilience and determination to succeed. What makes the series compelling is its execution. Despite the absence of star power (unlike Ranveer Singh in ‘Gully Boy’ or Varun Dhawan in ‘ABCD 2’), it holds our attention from the beginning till the end.

Pawan Nagre (Mayur More) takes us along his journey that begins with a young Pawan (Anurag Koyande) stealing golf balls from the prestigious Bombay Royal Golf Club, to improvising an iron rod into a club and hitting plastic balls, to starting the Slum Golf tournament, to caddying amateur golfer Gaurav (Arjan Aujla), and to ultimately becoming a pro golfer.

This eight-episode series brings two contrasting worlds closer. The posh golf club with sprawling greens versus the congested lanes of Bharat Nagar. The hardships in Pawan’s life versus the lavish lifestyles of the members of the club. The one-room shanty where Pawan lives with his parents and sister versus the picture-perfect bungalow of Gaurav.

There are similarities too. If Pawan is battling sarcasm from his father day in and day out for playing marbles (what is golf but the elite way of playing marbles!) and rebuked for not taking up some serious games like cricket or football, Gaurav too has a strained relationship with his father (Sumeet Sachdev) to deal with.

But amidst the poverty, discrimination and fight for survival germinate endearing stories of love and friendships. Friendships of Pawan, Shahrukh (Satyam Sharma) and Chandan (Bhoomika Meena), and a very unlikely one between Pawan and Gaurav. There are romantic tracks, too, between Pawan and Aarushi (Vallari Viraj), which ends up in a break-up and also between Chandan and Dinesh (Shivraj Waichal), another caddie from Bharat Nagar who dies in an accident. However, the relation dynamics between Pawan and his coach Gautam Rane (Sharad Kelkar) stand out in this emotional sphere.

Rane represents the middle class in these two contrasting worlds of ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’. His attitude makes him unusually harsh with his protégé and adds layers to the narrative.

‘Slum Golf’ is high on good performances. More is great as the gifted golfer with his burning desire to make a mark in his chosen field, but torn between his dreams and reality. His body language and demeanour are spot-on. Kelkar as someone who has his own demons to fight is admirable. Aujla, trying to win his father’s affection by becoming a better golfer, is endearing. He adds softness to the harsh realities and competitiveness on which the series dwells on.

Another character who goes almost unnoticed but whose songs heighten the emotional moments is Aditya A. The singer performs his songs as himself in the series and captures the essence of the situations perfectly. What the makers, however, went overboard with is the sequence of the slum eviction drive that pushes Pawan’s family on to the street along with others. The situation seems a little imposed and the solution seems all too cosy. Apart from stretching the narrative, it does nothing to the story.

But there are enough highs in the golf course to make up for it — an inter-state caddie tournament, the qualifier tournament for amateur golfers to become pros, and of course the Slum Golf tournament. The competitiveness is palpable as it should be in any sports drama, but it’s not devoid of human emotions.

When Pawan loses a game to a youngster minutes before the most important match of his life, he says, “He won, and I learnt.” And that’s where Sujay Sunil Dahake makes a perfect putt!