Starring: Sanjay Dutt, Nargis Fakhri, Ankita Lokhande

Directed by: Girish Malik

BLUF

A Doctor makes his way back to Afghanistan after having lost his family. This time he starts training refugee orphan children in the game of cricket. This is the story set against the backdrop of the long Afghan war and its human toll on local people.

THE MEAT AND THE POTATOES:

A Doctor with the Indian Army starts cricket coaching for disillusioned, impressionable children of conflict and by doing so, shows us the toll that conflict inflicts upon people during prolonged wars.  The attempt at showcasing death and destruction against the hope that playing a competitive game ignites hope in not only the refugee camp but also in the life of the Doctor,

IN THE ZONE

We wish that this story that had so much potential had been treated better by the director. In parts, the story becomes so slow that you really wait for the next notable event to occur. The narrative is patchy and where this human-interest story could have been a really great tale to tell, it becomes a documentary of sorts where the narrative moves from one protagonist to another without much of a handover. The reason for the existence of a lot of actors is unknown.

FWAR

The SFX, action sequences, pace, cinematography, and the pace of the movie are mediocre. We missed a good music store and the action sequences are very raw.

The children actors were great in parts yet lacked credibility in the rounding of their roles. Why Nargis Fakri exists is not known and Rahul Dev as the evil Taliban guy lacked gravitas.

WHAT WE LOVED: The story had potential, yet it is cinema’s loss that its promise could not be explored

WHAT WE MISSED: better direction, a tighter narrative and just a better cinematic experience for the story.