Intense, Humorous, Thought provoking, Effective, Educative!!!
I entered the cinema hall with a delay of 5 minutes along with a group of friends. The interview of Chambal Valley’s dreaded Dacoit Paan Singh Tomar had already started. Brijender Kala, playing the role of the reporter leaves an impact on the audience, albeit his screen presence is comparatively less. He also adds humor in few scenes. As the movie unfolds, rather the interview continues we get to know more about PST.
PST after getting into the army returns home with gifts for his mother, kids and wife (Played by Mahie Gill). PST flirts with his wife, effective Village style romance. The crowd bursts into laughter when PST calls his kids and tells them to buy lemon candies from a shop that is far by. For me, getting to know the life of such a person was educative and highly informative. PST’s talent is discovered when he gets punished and that is running 10 rounds holding his rifle up in the air, the most common military punishment showcased in Bollywood cinemas. Also when he delivers an Ice Cream in four minutes before it gets melted. PST originally runs just for the food and that’s why he gets transferred to the Army Sports team which denies him a place in the Combat teams during 1965.
PST wins the gold in 1967 in the 3000m Steeplechase event and things change in his personal life. A feud between the brothers makes him quit the army turn into an outlaw, eventually going on to become a dreaded dacoit of the Chambal Valley. This is where the movie turns intense. The movie captures the simplicity of PST and his moral values as a person and how the society plays a role in turning him into what he becomes known for. PST himself says that no one identified when he created national records under his name, but when he made a mockery of Police Department of three states, He was a hero for all the media. The movie comes to a melancholic end and names of few more unknown army greats have been mentioned in the credits. The movie indeed is thought provoking and it did make me feel that it’s time we give the same importance to other sports like we do for cricket.
Tigmanshu Dhulia, Splendid direction. Period!
Coming to Irfaan Khan at the age of 50 plays the role of PST winning over the hearts of the audience. He’s India’s most underrated actor who always gives highly rated performance.
Things to watch out for in the movie:
- Mannerisms of the reporter. Played by Brijender Kala
- PST’s appetite for food J
- “I am a rebel, not a Dacoit. Dacoits are found in the Parliament”
- Ill-treatment to the ex-army members.
I would rate the movie 4/5.
Read my review if the ‘Dirty Picture‘