A Bollywood flick? Of course not….Chak De India defies all logic or commercial formula that has been prevailed in filmdom from past six decades. To count, it doesn’t have a pair lead, no mushy-mushy dialogues (A must in Shahrukh movies), hero not running after heroine around trees, no item number from some hottie, no space for villain in the script since who can play villain better than the circumstances. Whew! Then what this movie is all about?

This movie is about the womanhood celebration, undying spirit of a true sportsman whose heart beats for his country. From the very first scene, story and characters create its own ambience which lasts till the last reel of the movie. One can feel the intuition that you are not going to watch a typical bollywood massala movie; but a story which is going to break several myths.

A story that needs to be told at any cost, even if Yashraj Banner has to compromise on their tested formula of romantic weepies and must say; the compromise was worth for!

Story begins with the ordeal of Kabir Khan (Shahrukh Khan), the captain of men’s Indian national hockey team who missed a penalty corner in the deciding moments of the final match with arch rival Pakistan and gets labeled as a traitor by the hostile fans and unfair media. Here, Kabir Khan just didn’t lose the match but his respect too to be called an honest citizen of India. Being a muslim made the curse worse.

Lost in isolation for next seven years; Kabir Khan comes back with a mission: to gain back the lost glory and self-respect with the same game which took everything a man could have! He joins as the coach of the women’s national hockey team that consists of sixteen girls from different background, with difficult soaring attitude and sky-high egos. Now, coach has to build a team which can win the world championship of hockey scheduled after three months in Australia. Easier said than done? Naah! All the girls learn their lessons hard way and follow the funda that a team game can’t be won just with individualistic brilliance.

Lacking team spirit finds its way through a fight at public place that erupts in the form of girls versus boys. Here, they bury the hatchet and entire team binds as ONE first time. Beating the boys to blue, girls come to know the importance of togetherness. This fight scene at MacDonald is shot beautifully with close-ups, tables turned upside down, while the coach and staff enjoy calmly. Story shows all the internal team-politics, ego-clashes, and all sorts of conflicts a team can have in any game.

Kabir Khan knows what it takes to get there. And what it means to return empty handed. This time, he wants to make sure that its different. He knows there are no second chances. Ultimately, for a coach, it comes just not to deal with different people but dealing with difficult egos. As the coach tells his team, “Is team kaa sabse bada gunda main hoon.”

The racy script with witty punch lines makes the ride joyful throughout the movie. One can sense the sincere effort put by the writer (Jaideep Sahni did a brilliant job) while writing a hindi film story without using any clichéd heavy-duty dialogues, Switzerland in background, eye-candy glamour and ‘Romance’, a territory owned by Yashraj banner. The best thing about the script is that it doesn’t wander from the main theme ‘sports’ even for a single moment. Audience feels like clapping for every single goal scored on the screen.

Now, come to the performances. Shahrukh is the mainstay of the entire plot and comes up with a performance that will shut up the critics who says that he is just good at romance with his silly mannerisms. After ‘Swadesh’, here is another movie where he is not playing the ‘Star Shahrukh Khan’ but ‘Actor Shahrukh Khan’.  His body language combined with apt dialogue delivery makes audience see a different Shahrukh whom we hardly know. From commercial point of view, he is the main crowd puller for the movie and won’t disappoint them for
sure.

His chemistry with the girls, especially with Vidya Malvade, the captain of the hockey team, is really admirable. Few other girls too shine with their natural performances. Sagarika Ghatge as Preeti Sabharwal, lass from Chandigarh, is determined to teach her cricket-star boyfriend the true meaning of sportsmanship. She is a revelation in the movie, the scene stealer among the girls. It won’t be surprised if audience gets to see her in more movies.

The music is composed by the Merchant brothers Salim Merchant and Sulaiman Merchant. Lyrics are written by Jaideep Sahni, who also wrote the screenplay and co-wrote the story with Shimit Amin. Title song rocks with its catchy lyrics and pacy music. It has become a sort of anthem for sports which one can hear being played in the background on Star TV India-England Cricket matches these days. Other songs are also good reflecting the sporty look through the lyrics. Though the story line goes on the expected line, but it is the screenplay and hard-hitting performance by Shahrukh that makes it more interesting. Shimit Amin has scored once again with another hit in kitty with ‘Chak De India’ and Yashraj will smile again to the box office collections.

It’s good that nowadays sports are shown as the main theme effectively in the movies such as Lagaan, Tararumpum, Apne, and now Chak De India! Good show, bollywood.

Strengths: Script, Shahrukh Khan,

Weakness: Length, Editing

Verdict: Super hit