Continuing the bio-pic mania in Hindi cinema, here is yet another film based on the life of a sports person which is actually unique and different from the others, due to a sudden unexpected twist not related to the game itself. It’s about the comeback of Sandeep Singh, an Indian hockey player and Arjuna awardee whose journey towards his goal suddenly got disrupted by an accidental gun-shot changing his entire life. The film is about how he bounced back displaying a gifted courageous spirit and then went on to win more laurels for the country in many major competitions.
As a film SOORMA’s biggest merit or contribution is the fact that it makes you witness a real life inspiring story, you might not be aware of. Honestly, I got to know it, only because I had people deeply involved in hockey in my close circle, but otherwise, it’s certainly going to be a shocking revelation for many (in the country as well as abroad) knowing it from the film itself.
Unfortunately SOORMA works on the information level only and falls way short of expressing the tragedy, trauma and struggle of Sandeep Singh in any highly effective manner. Caught between the dilemma of making an impactful biopic and a safe commercial entertainer, director Shaad Ali and his writers decide to put everything in as a masala flick, missing the actual soul of an incredible, amazing real story. As a result, where the first half remains light and breezy, devoting a good 30 minutes to the childhood and romance, the second half becomes too casual and predictable losing all the promised excitement of an amazing comeback. Strangely the energy and proud of being a part of Indian team and wearing the jersey is also never visible in SOORMA as prominently seen in other sports based Hindi films.
In fact the most important part of the story, the recovery of Sandeep Singh from his injury remains the weakest feature of the film, which ideally should have been its USP. The champ’s treatment, revival, entry back to the field and the end happens to be too quick without any impressive depth leaving you less moved or satisfied. Besides the romantic link-up in the climax again turns out to be too filmy and clichéd, seriously affecting the film in its most crucial moments.
Though the on-field sequences are shot-well with a clever editing, still the question remains that why in most of the Indian Sports movies, sequences of the training and the on-field game look so casual & easy?
In the musical department, the songs once again fail to make any solid impact (including the unnecessary ones with a weird insertion of ‘Padhaariye-Padhaariye’) despite the lyrics of Gulzar and the same can be said about its uninspiring background score.
Thankfully the performances don’t let you down with the singer-turned-actor Diljit Dosanjh winning your heart through his sincere underplayed act along Angad Bedi and Taapsee Pannu doing complete justice to their given important roles. The loving bond between the two brothers is heartwarming and a few family sequences portray the feelings well. But still the emotional quotient of the film could have been a lot different than what we get to see in the film’s second half compiled in a hasty manner.
In the supporting cast, Satish Kaushik as the father doesn’t get much to do whereas it was nice to see Kulbhushan Kharbanda back on screen after a long gap. Both Danish Hussain and Vijay Raaz as coaches, try their best to lift up the narrative despite the writers portraying them as loud caricatures. However the best dialogue remains the one from Vijay Raaz saying “Bihari Hain Hum, Thook Ke Maathey Mein Chhed Kar Denge”.
SOORMA also doesn’t come up a strong dramatic adaptation of the real life story as it largely appears to be a Punjabi film made in Hindi to cater a bigger market. Where the dialogues and their rendition have a heavy Punjabi feel, the songs too have mostly Punjabi lyrics that are sure to go over the head for all the Non-Punjabi audience. Even the pronunciation remains faulty at places sung by non-punjabi singers. Moreover the Punjabi films viewers have recently seen two Punjabi films based on Hockey with one titled HARJEETA, having quite similar sequences dealing with the romance element.
In all, SOORMA is made on a unique and highly inspiring life story of Sandeep Singh. But the film is not inspiring enough as a screen-interpretation of the same falling short of the expectations.
Still I would like all youngsters to see it once to take their individual lessons about life and how to deal with its scary pressures. The recent news of a struggler committing suicide in Mumbai, makes this film even more important to be seen by every struggling youngster, to realize how precious the gift of life is, usually taken for granted.
We all face our own setbacks at various stages of life, but the need is to be SANDEEP SINGH in those times, preparing for a strong comeback answering the world, instead of giving away like a loser falling into the clutches of depression.
So even if SOORMA is an average film, it still has a powerful message to share that can lift up your spirits to continue the struggle called LIFE and successfully overcome its hurdles.
Rating : 2.5 / 5
