Movie Review: Mary Kom

Biopics aren’t easy films to be made; these require a lot of research on the person, correct casting and careful execution. Expectations soar high right post announcement of the film and the audiences expect a well-made justified take. Some are more interested to know about the person’s personal life; some others want to get right to the point and probably look forward to learn something more than what Wikipedia has to offer. Bollywood hasn’t really ventured much into this territory but a recent spate of successes (I’m naming ‘Paan Singh Tomar’, ‘Bhaag Milkha Bhaag’ and ‘The Dirty Picture’ in the same sentence!) have made film-makers believe that it can be a safe bet getting a little serious while entertaining.

Produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Debutante Director Omung Kumar’s ‘Mary Kom’ tells us the story of an Indian Boxer from a small village in Manipur who is a five-time World Champion. Chungneijang (Priyanka Chopra) is interested in boxing right from childhood. Born into a poor family, her father is a rice farmer and is concerned about his tomboy daughter who loses her cool at the drop of a hat. Not informing her strict father, Chungneijang starts practicing under the State Boxing Coach (Nepali Actor Sunil Thapa) and is rechristened M.C. Mary Kom by him just before her first big match. A local footballer, Onler (Darshan Kumar) is smitten by the lady and proposes marriage after a few years of knowing each other. At the peak of her career, Mary walks down the aisle with him and gives birth to twins soon after though not planned. Her coach is disappointed as he wanted her to create history and gives up on her. Mary herself gets too occupied with her husband and kids though she misses being in the ring terribly. A few incidents make her realize that she is rather forgotten in just a short span of time. Onler takes up the responsibility to look after the kids and encourages his wife to do what she has always loved- punch hard to play for the country.

‘Mary Kom’ should have been a better movie but that doesn’t mean it is a bad one. To start with, Priyanka Chopra doesn’t look like Mary Kom. Yes; a lot of effort has gone to make her look convincing and that includes her body language or even the freckles on her face. It isn’t really a case of miscasting because nobody else apart from her could pull off the role better. Director Omung Kumar keeps it short and tries to balance Mary Kom’s personal life with her boxing career. For the most part, he succeeds but somehow the desired impact doesn’t come up too well. He resorts to some melodrama which hits the right notes but not really in the climax, when Mary is fighting an important match and gets beaten for some time because she learns her child is being operated right then. But these are minor glitches for a film which tells you the story of a girl from a neglected part of our country making us proud on the international arena. During an outburst after losing out on a national match (her first post marriage), Mary Kom shouts out to the officers of the boxing federation that it was purposely done because she is a Manipuri. I’m not a follower of sports and I have no idea if she actually said that but it’s a strong statement coming from someone living in the neglected North Eastern part of our country. In another scene, she applies for a job and is offered one of a ‘hawaldaar’, reminding us of the dire state of sportspersons in our country; that is, if one isn’t a cricketer. Traveling in a bus with her husband and kids, Mary isn’t even recognized by a young girl and her father. Scenes like this are what make ‘Mary Kom’ a dekko. Dialogues are good but since we have characters here who don’t speak Hindi, the accent does come across as a little pretentious. Music wasn’t needed and neither does it sound inspirational.

I’m not a huge Priyanka Chopra fan and when she is doing the normal stuff, I find her quite irritating because it just doesn’t suit her much. But when she is into a challenging role, I have to state none of the actresses or her contemporaries come close to her. She is one of the finest actresses Bollywood has witnessed and undoubtedly, she is outstanding as Mary Kom. She has worked really hard and it is evident in every scene right from the start. Be it her body language or accent or looking like a boxer punching on the ring, she simply nails it! It should be a tough fight between Rani Mukerji (‘Mardaani’) and Kangana Ranaut (‘Queen’) this year at the awards but I’ll not include Priyanka in the race; she has a league of her own and terming her performance as award-worthy isn’t worthy enough. Darshan Kumar as the ever-supporting loving husband does a great job too and leaves a mark

standing in the same frame as Priyanka. Sunil Thapa is good and conveys his hopes and disappointments as a coach so well. The supporting cast does well.

Watch it or not: Absolutely! It isn’t a perfect film or a very memorable one but it does make up for the loss due to a towering performance by Priyanka Chopra.

At the Box-Office: It will start on a decent note and pick up pace due to mostly good word-of-mouth/reviews. It’s heartening to see three women-centric films make money this year. One can only hope that we will have actresses doing 100 crore plus solo starrers someday soon. This one will do good business.

• About the Author

About Abhirup Dhar

I don't watch movies... I live them! Let me introduce myself. Abhirup Dhar was born in Kolkata and is still being brought up in India. A banker by profession, he is filmy to the core and is passionate about reviewing movies and writing. He likes to live on his own… he likes to be blunt, sarcastic, famous, infamous, confident, over-confident, moody at times… he likes to be himself. He is imperfect because perfection is boring. His love for movies dates back to his childhood days when he studied in a boarding school. A three-month Winter Vacation every year… and he made sure he watched as many movies then. Parents thought it was a phase... he knew it was Passion and he knew it back then itself. The craziness to watch movies on the Big Screen began during the last two years of school when he literally bunked to town so that he could catch up with the new Hindi Movie releases. Some thought he was plain crazy. He confirmed it was Passion... yet again. The hard fact is that not always can you walk a path you are passionate about. You have expectations to fulfill and Life to be made. But Life gives you chances and you have to grab them. So... here is he... your friendly critic who will be giving you his Verdict every week so that you can decide which release is worth your moolah and which is not! See you at the Movies! Stay connected at Facebook and Twitter!