‘Maidaan’: Inspiring, absorbing and uplifting sports drama

This week’s release, the Ajay Devgn-starrer Maidaan is a rare film that has its heart in the right place and narrates the story of Syed Abdul Rahim, the Indian football coach between 1952 and 1962.

Hyderabad: Nearly all sports dramas have a formulaic, fluffy storyline, and usually fall flat because though the stories may be compelling, they often fall short in the department of original storytelling that goes well beyond the predictable fare.

Only a few such films are surprisingly fun to watch, mostly due to their high energy and the emotionally charged experience that they offer.

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This week’s release, the Ajay Devgn-starrer Maidaan is a rare film that has its heart in the right place and narrates the story of Syed Abdul Rahim, the Indian football coach between 1952 and 1962.

Rahim revolutionised the sport in the country and it was because of him that the Indian football team was once called the ‘Brazil of Asia’. It was thanks to his stewardship that the India team achieved superiority in both the technical department and tactical innovations.

The team went on to win gold medals at the Asian Games (1951 in New Delhi and 1962 in Jakarta) and even reached the semi-finals of the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, making India the first Asian country to achieve this degree of success.

Written and directed by Amit Ravindernath Sharma, the sports drama film stars Ajay Devgn, Priyamani and Gajraj Rao. The three-hour film opens with India losing the match against Yugoslavia at the 1952 Olympic Games, largely because of injuries caused by the lack of football gear.

It may come as a shock to many, but till 1952 the Indian team did not have gear of their own. With no proper shoes on their feet, the players were asked to wrap cloth around their feet even when they were playing international matches.

The Federation based out of Calcutta blamed the coach, Syed Abdul Rahim, entirely for the team’s failure. A victim of internal politics and targeted by senior journalists, played in the film by Gajaraj Rao and Rudranil Ghosh, for losing the match, Rahim managed to convince the governing body that he must be given a chance to train the boys. Focusing more on the game and the skills used by the players, the coach teaches the team members how to make their winning moves and game-clinching throws. Witness the wild beastly chases that bring a roaring stadium crowd up on its feet.

This 182-minute film is inspiring, and compassionate, and comes with a sly undercurrent of social commentary. Thanks to spirited performances, the virtually unknown but extremely talented cast members — notably, Chaitanya Sharma as PK Banerjee, Amartya Ray as Chuni Goswami, Davinder Gill as Jarnail Singh, Tanmay Bhattacharjee as Pradyut Burman, and Tejas Ravishankar as Peter Thangaraj — play real-life roles convincingly. It is also buoyed by a standout performance from Ajay Devgn who underplays the real-life Rahim and adds depth to his character