Maidaan Review: 'Enter the field as 11 but play as one,' this dialogue perfectly captures the spirit of 'Maidaan' and the emotions of unity, passion and sportsmanship it evokes. Starring Ajay Devgn in the lead role, the movie is based on the true story of Indian football team coach Syed Abdul Rahim and how the team won the Jakarta Asian Games in 1962 despite facing hardships.
Rating: 3.5/5
Review:
What works for Maidaan
'Maidaan' has been made with passion which is impeccably shown on the big screen. The stellar performances of every actor in 'Maidaan' truly elevate the movie and make it more interesting to watch. The casting is near perfect as all the actors resemble the real players mentioned in the movie. The background score deserves appreciation as it perfectly captures the essence of every scene and helps the story move forward. 'Maidaan' might test the viewers' patience due to its lengthy time but the last 30 minutes of the movie are beautiful. The movie also shows glimpses of Syed Abdul Rahim's personal life but never wavers from showing his devotion to football.
The climax and ending feel rewarding and satisfying as the movie takes on an almost impossible journey of creating a new history of the Indian football team. 'Maidaan' is a delightful watch for all the fans of sports biopic and football. Even if someone is not familiar with football, the movie is definitely enjoyable.
What does not work for Maidaan
The three-hour duration is one of the biggest drawbacks of 'Maidaan' and the movie tests patience in the first half. The patience gets paid off in the last 30 minutes but some scenes and songs could have been easily removed. 'Maidaan' uses the stereotypical trope of villainizing some characters, who want to sabotage the game of the Indian football team. Many times these characters look like caricatures instead of real-life prominent personalities and these cliches have been portrayed before in other sports movies like 'Dangal'.
Performances:
Every actor in 'Maidaan' has given an earnest performance. Ajay Devgn as S A Rahim is definitely the show stealer and his powerful on-screen presence captures every emotion with perfection. He beautifully portrays Syed Abdul Rahim's confidence, struggle, passion for football and determination to make the Indian team win.
Priyamani is commendable as Runa Rahim, Syed Abdul Rahim's wife and beautifully plays her part. Gajraj Rao superbly plays the role of an egoistic journalist Parbhu Ghosh but his character is a cliched villain in every Indian sports drama. Every actor cast in the Indian football team is near-perfect and resembles the real players. Chaitanya Sharma as PK Banerjee, Tejas Ravishankar as Peter Thangaraj, Amartya Ray as Chuni Goswami, Davinder Gill as Jarnail Singh, Sushant Waydande as Tulsidas Balaram and others did a praiseworthy job in 'Maidaan'.
Final Thought:
'Maidaan' is close to a perfect sports biopic but is marred by lengthy time duration and some caricature-like villains. Despite a few flaws, the movie is a celebration of football, its golden era and Syed Abdul Rahim, the man who did a near-impossible thing and brought glory to India.