Vikrant Shekhawat : Dec 01, 2023, 06:00 AM
Sam Bahadur Review: No one gets the title of Field Marshal just like that. The best among the 19 titles of the army. He must have had some skills. Which makes him different from others. The duty of a soldier is to understand the dignity of this position and follow it with the same patience and devotion. Do not compromise with it on any basis. Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw lived with the same temperament and Vicky Kaushal portrayed him exactly on screen in this film and gave a wonderful tribute to a great soldier. Meghna Gulzar definitely seemed to deviate from her craft and could not do full justice to the film in the attempt to make it commercial.What is the story?Field Marshal Sam Hormsji Framji Jamsetji Manekshaw is considered one of the bravest soldiers of the country. He was the first Field Marshal of the country. This was a foreign title which started with honoring him. At present this title has been abolished. Talking about Sam, first he served for the British Army and then after independence he became an integral part of the Indian Army. He was a brave soldier, hence his name was Sam Bahadur. This biopic has been made covering his entire career, political affairs and personal life.How is the direction?The film has been directed by Meghna Gulzar. Gulzar has previously made films like Talwar, Raazi and Chhapaak. His first popular film Talwar was liked. After this, his film Raazi with Alia Bhatt boosted his career. The film also received the Filmfare Award. After this, even though his film Chhapaak unfortunately got caught up in the agenda, the critics still praised the film. But Meghna Gulzar has not been able to do complete justice to this film.His father Gulzar Saheb had made the film Aandhi in his time. It is controversially considered to be a film based on the life of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Because the strong image of Indira Gandhi is seen in the character of Suchitra Sen. It may also have been taken as a reference. But the role of Indira Gandhi has not been played properly in this film. It is shown as if she easily agreed to everything. But it was not so. She was a strong leader and took decisions very thoughtfully. Manekshaw's strained relationship with Indira Gandhi has been shown, which definitely creates some interest in the film.Where did the mistake happen?But the film was on the personal and professional life of Sam Manekshaw. Neither his childhood, nor his upbringing, nor the beautiful stories of his youth were shown properly. Giving only two minutes to the romance of a tough soldier in the film shows how weak the screenplay of the film is. It was repeatedly said in the film that Sam Manekshaw's sense of humor was excellent but not many such scenes were seen. Yes, his dialogues were well written.The film was like a simple documentary till the interval, but after the interval the film gains grip. The battlefield has also been shown with great formality. The war could have been shown in more detail. Overall, there is no balance in the direction of Meghna Gulzar. This was a good story. If she had presented it as a web series, it would have been doubly happy for the fans of the country's first Field Marshal Sam Bahadur. Rest Meghna Gulzar is a brilliant director. She makes films with sensitivity and full responsibility.How is the casting and acting?Vicky Kaushal, Sanya Malhotra and Fatima Sana Shaikh are in lead roles in the film. Apart from this, there is no big or popular face in the film. Characters like Nehru, Sardar Patel and Jinnah were shown in the film. But none of the characters were matching the other characters properly. Fatima Sana Shaikh also looked good in the role of Indira Gandhi.Vicky Kaushal came wearing the soul of the characterVicky Kaushal is one of those actors in the industry today who does complete justice to his character. In this film, he was to be Sam Manekshaw and not Vicky Kaushal. He came as Sam Manekshaw from the beginning. During this role, he had completely separated Vicky Kaushal from himself. He was lost in the character. He had become the character. He does acting in such a way that it gets a different status. Vicky was perfect in the role of Sam. His dialogues were also good and they occupied about 70 percent of the length of the film. In such a situation, he did his job flawlessly. Had this been a web series, it would undoubtedly have been a big treat for Sam fans.See or not?Well, a group is already ready for the Animal film. But Animal is the story of a toxic relationship between father and son. There are fighting scenes in Animal too but they are showy ones. Sam Manekshaw is the national hero of the country. It would be unfortunate for the countrymen not to see his biopic. There is a fighting scene in this also. But this is the story of the glory of the army after the independence of the country and the most glorious soldier, Sam Manekshaw, who wrote the story of that glory. And this is what makes this film most special.