Striker Movie Review

Cast: Siddharth, Ankur Vikal, Aditya Pancholi, Anupam Kher, Padmapriya, Vidya Malvade

Director: Chandan Arora

Rating: ***
 
We seldom have good sports films, and a movie showing sports in such a light as in ‘Striker’ is even rarer. ‘Striker’ is not like a regular movie. It is not about the usual struggle of a player to prove his mettle to the world and to attain love or riches. And neither does the player in ‘Striker’ live the game through his youth like most sportsperson do. ‘Striker’ hence is much more than a sports film. It is more about a person who takes up to a sport, in this case carrom, to stay alive and get back what is rightfully his. Hence it does not have an underdog who is out struggling to get to a winning finish. It is rather a journey of a young guy through good and bad times.
 
On those counts, ‘Striker’ is one of the best storylines that have come into Bollywood in a long time. However, the inconsistency in pace restricts it from becoming a great film. But the movie does qualify as another good watch from Chandan Arora who had earlier made ‘Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon’ and ‘Main Meri Patni Aur Woh’.
 
A large part of the story is set in 1988. Surya (Siddharth) is a young boy who lives in Malwani – a ghetto in Mumbai. He was the national junior carrom champion. However, as he grows up he gives up on carrom to work towards going to Dubai. He wants to settle the financial problems of his family with the money he earns in the Gulf. But his hard earned money goes to frauds and he is left broke. He then decides to play it out on the carrom board to get back what is rightfully his. And though the game gets over, he gets back to carrom and also the addiction to win every game he plays and the money that comes along.
 
‘Striker’ almost reinstates the role of fate in one’s life. Unlike many idealistic movies which talk about hard work leading to success and glory, ‘Striker’ shows how your surroundings try best to finish every chance you have. And it could be an innocent friend or a random person you never knew!
 
Though ‘Striker’ has an interesting narrative and screenplay, it does get a bit long. Yet at some point towards the end the film seems a bit hurried up. Especially Surya getting into a job suddenly after everything goes bad is not digestible. Also, considering there is no proper culmination to the final solution, the film does tend to leave you unsatisfied.
 
‘Striker’ has its plusses though. It has been shot really well and the period settings are justified. The dialogues and music work fabulously. You got to hear the sledging that goes on in the background when a match is on. It could put the Australian cricket team to shame! It also has some great performances from the overall cast. While Siddharth is essentially the hero of the film, Ankul Vikal and Aditya Pancholi shine. Vidya Malvade plays only the sister and yet manages to get some more scenes than Siddharth’s love interest, Padmapriya.
 
Overall, ‘Striker’ is entertaining in bits and manages to keep your attention. But it is still a rather niche film, and most certainly a person with no keen interest in either carrom or the life in the ghettos will end up not liking it much. Watch it for Siddharth. He actually plays the game superbly apart from acting and singing well.