There are films and there are films. And then there are films like Iqbal. If I were to describe Iqbal in a sentence I’d say that, for the kind of cinema we Indians are used to witnessing, Iqbal should not technically qualify as a Bollywood flick at all...
Well, it’s been a long long time since a movie like Iqbal was made. It’s such a breath of fresh air for the connoisseurs and average movie goers that I’m frankly surprised it’s maintained such a low profile even weeks after its release. Actually, Nagesh Kukunoor has never really worked on marketing his films real big, so all his movies (though exceptionally good) do well only because of word of mouth. And since I just can’t talk too much, I’m choosing to write about it instead.
Everyone knows that Iqbal is the story of a deaf-and-dumb 18 year old boy striving to be a part of the Indian cricket team (which is a surprise considering someone still wants to join the team after all that’s been happening lately...) The film is about how he encounters difficulties and comes out of them successfully and a wiser person. Although, nothing about the story is really novel or original (the tale of an underdog making it to the pinnacle of success has been dealt with some 1236 times already), it’s the treatment that Kukunoor gives which really touches the hearts of the audience.
Till date, I had only seen one of Kukunoor’s films except Iqbal and that was Teen Deewarein. Although I’d heard a lot about Hyderabad Blues, Rockford, Bollywood Calling etc. I got to appreciate his worth as a director only after Teen Deewarein. This motivated me to go and watch Iqbal and boy, am I glad I did!
Coming to the technical aspects, Iqbal has been (like all other Kukunoor’s films) shot in an Andhra village. The setting is very real and great care was taken even with the costumes and sets. The actors are perfect to the T and special mention must go to the protagonist Shreyas Talpade for giving a mind boggling performance even amidst seasoned actors like Naseeruddin Shah and Girish Karnad (I must add here that he’s very cute and innocent looking and I’ve got a BIG crush on him now). Shah and Karnad also excel in their respective roles, as usual, but taking them away from the limelight is Iqbal’s sister, played so amazingly well by Shweta Prasad. She really looks every bit of the understanding and helpful sister and complements Shreyas’ performance in the film. The mother, played by some lady who’s supposedly a veteran in Marathi cinema and the father who’s another well known actor, both gave superb performances. In fact, the direction and the acting can be considered Iqbal’s strongest point.
The background score too was mild and constrained. Nowhere in the film was anything done that suggested it was larger than life or overly melodramatic. Everything simply gelled so well that it was a pleasure to see it coming alive on screen…thank god that Kukunoor didn’t attempt to make it look anything like Black which, in my opinion, was the most over rated film I’ve ever seen in my life. Here, you never get to feel sorry for the handicapped guy and instead just join him on his journey to making it big in life.
The track Aashayen was a beautifully composed and sung score and was played at exactly the right time. All in all, there’s just nothing that I can find wrong or out of place about Iqbal. The bottomline? Go and watch it if you still haven’t cos this movie isn’t going to come back. Ever. So just go and watch it, it’s time and money well spent.