Raising a child requires a village. And it takes a nation to produce a stellar squad that can defeat the greatest in the world. The core of “Maidaan” is the inspirational true story of Syed Abdul Rahim, the first Indian football manager and coach who led his team to two gold medals at the Asian Games in 1951 and 1962.
The “Maidaan” squad deserves a lot of credit simply for bringing to life a now-sadly-forgotten individual who inspired a youthful team to give it their all against such powerful Asian opponents as Indonesia and South Korea. Instead of cricket, it’s football, where India hasn’t been able to make an international impact since Rahim retired after a protracted battle with lung cancer.
The person’s Muslim faith is significant, as it represents a courageous decision in contemporary India. Although the actual Rahim, also known as Rahim Sa’ab, was born in Hyderabad, the majority of his fights and victories occurred in Calcutta, the home of Indian football.
It’s important to note that Rahim’s motley crew, which Ajay Devgn played with genuine sincerity and just a hint of slo-mo swagger, has a composition so syncretic that it brings back fond memories: players from all backgrounds and places crammed together in the changing room and on the pitch, trying to work as one cohesive fighting unit.
With the support of a potent sports writer (Gajraj Rao), Rahim and his main rival (Rudranil Ghosh) in the Football Federation of India are driven by a sense of regional pride. In the games people play behind closed doors, deciding who makes the team and gets to go on the coveted “foreign” tours, it’s more about Bengal vs. Hyderabad than it is about Hindu vs. Muslim. Take a boisterous Bengali away from his fandom and what you get is a roar of silence or in this case, complete hostility.
The three-hour movie has moments where the action seems to be pushed to the side as the drama is amplified just for impact and the loud background music seems to be taking control. However, not all of the musical sequences are bad. There’s a really beautiful one early in the movie that goes along with the finding of a player in an unlikely area. However, there comes a moment when it gets to be too much, too loud, and you want to cover your ears with your hands.
Also, “Maidaan” frequently goes into an explanation-only, tell-don’t-show mode. Additionally, the themes of a sporting drama remain consistent. For example, a coach’s inspirational speech just before a big game seems more like a dry, protracted conversation on the “power of one” than a motivating call to arms. What makes up for that is the fantastic activity on the field: even a beginner like me comprehended the ‘strategy’ put out by the coach which enabled India overcome S Korea 2-1, a historic triumph that’s never been bested.
Every performance is powerful. With his awful wig and never-ending smile, Gajraj Rao plays a resentful sports writer with a grudge. He’s brilliant. As does Ghosh, who plays the virtuous, shingara-loving babu who has no enthusiasm for the sport and instead revels in his authority. These occasionally have a one-note quality, but that fits the type of movie it is—one where statement is made at the expense of subtlety.
You’ll smile at some of the home patterns with the dedicated Runa (Priyamani) and her husband Rahim (the majority of the male characters in this movie smoke a lot). Furthermore, the actors that comprise the team replacing such well-known figures as Chuni Goswami, P K Banerjee, and Peter Thangaraj all have player-like looks, with the exception of a few recognisable features.
Even if “Maidaan” has its share of problems, you can’t help but smile, applaud, and wipe away a tear of pride as you read this underdog tale.
Cast of Maidaan: Rudranil Ghosh, Priyamani, Gajraj Rao, and Ajay Devgn
Director: Amit Ravindernath Sharma
Ratings: 2.5-star
