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Sarfira Movie Review: Inspirational stories of grit and determination have always been a favourite for our filmmakers, especially when they are inspired by true events or based on someone’s life. They instantly make an emotional impact. Akshay Kumar’s Sarfira is proof that when you have a good story, even if it is a remake, you can do a lot to present it to a different audience in a completely new setting. (Also read – Releases in cinemas this week: Sarfira, Indian 2, Fly Me To The Moon and more)
Directed by Sudha Kongara, who also directed the Tamil original Soorarai Pottru (2020) starring Suriya, Sarfira, an adaptation of GR Gopinath’s memoir Simply Fly: A Deccan Odyssey, is not just a rags to riches story. It talks about resilience, and how when someone decides to stand up against the system and fight all odds, nothing can stop them. Though there have been a lot of films on people chasing unfulfilled dreams, Sarfira stands apart for its treatment and execution, and of course, for the consistency in its screenplay. It has the right amount of every emotion and doesn’t get bogged down for long. You experience happiness and sadness, and the very next moment, a sense of pride for seeing events unfold the way they did
Sarfira is the story of Veer Jagannath Mhatre (Akshay Kumar), a middle-class man hailing from a small village in Maharashtra, who dreams big of starting a low-cost airline to break the barriers of cost and caste. Against the non-violence principles of his teacher-father, whom he calls a coward, Veer believes that someone has to take responsibility to bring about change and end tyranny. Though both father and son are visionaries in their own ways, their conflicting beliefs about hooliganism and revolution form the core of this story.
After an argument, Veer leaves home to join the Indian Air Force and soon leaves it too to pursue his dream along with his two batchmates. He shares his idea with aviation tycoon Paresh Goswami (Paresh Rawal), who not only mocks him but becomes his archenemy. Every time Veer’s dream of starting an airline (which he calls the flying Udupi hotel) is about to come true, he faces corruption, power games, red tape, betrayal and class divide. How he overcomes all the challenges despite failing several times is what keeps us hooked to Sarfirra.
While returning home, Veer finds a supportive wife in Rani (Radhika Madan), who is equally ambitious and wants to run her own successful bakery business. This shared passion of doing something they love and not conforming to societal norms brings the two together. And they have some lovely moments together. For once, the age difference between Kumar and Madan might raise the usual questions, but I liked how the story very cleverly establishes the fact right at the beginning as to why Veer is still single at his age and how Rani, after being rejected 20 times, finds a suitable partner in him.
Kongara’s story makes you clap and cry at the same time and you feel for every character right from the beginning. Throughout its runtime, the film highlights and celebrates Veer’s journey of perseverance and strength to fight all odds. In between it gets a little repetitive but there is enough to bring you back to the actual story. Pooja Tolani’s dialogues are not too much but they still make you emotional and there is a tinge of humour here and there which flows naturally in the conversations. The screenplay that Kongara has written along with Shalini Ushadevi gets a little complicated at times especially when it switches between different timelines – Veer’s younger days, his conflict with the father, his marriage proposal, courtship with Rani and back to the present time. The constant flashbacks confuse you but luckily, Akshay’s changing looks make it a little easier for us to understand what sequence he and the story are referring to.
Sarfira is Akshay Kumar’s show from start to finish. He is in full form and brings alive a plethora of emotions with his honest performance.
We have seen this vulnerable side of the actor on the big screen for quite some time now. While Mission Raniganj (again a biopic) and Raksha Bandhan helped him bring out that side, the way Sarfira presents him is a gamechanger. There is rawness, conviction and honesty in his portrayal and it doesn’t give you a chance to blink whenever he is in the frame. The parts, where he is training at the Air Force camp, look physically exhausting, and at 56, he somehow pulls it off.
There are many of his scenes that completely astonished me. There is a scene where he asks people at the airport to lend him some money so that he can go home to visit his sick father, or when he asks his wife to lend him money. 15,000 so that he can make a deal, with the promise that he will return it soon, is heartbreaking, and performed very beautifully.
Madan has done well with her role. Fiery and fiery, she brings passion and charm to her character. Despite being a bit noisy at times, she manages to deliver an impressive performance and hold her own alongside a star like Kumar. Rawal as the clearly delineated villain sadly fails to evoke any emotions that stay with you. He is the least impressive, and even the supporting cast manages to rise above their average performances. I would have liked to see more of his face-off with Kumar on screen. Sadly, apart from his OCD of sanitising his hands every time Veer touches him, we don’t get to see the real side of his eccentricities. Prakash Belawadi, Seema Biswas, R. Sarathkumar and Anil Charanjeet have delivered some heartwarming scenes, even though you often feel that they enter and disappear from the story too conveniently.
At 155 minutes, Sarfira is a bit stretched and long, especially in the second half when the story has already taken off, but it takes forever to get off the ground. A crisp narrative and some clever cuts on the editing table would have helped. The songs seemed a bit unnecessary and they could have been easily avoided to keep the story more focused and concise. Despite these shortcomings, Sarfira rises up and keeps you engaged in the story, and in the end, you are left smiling and feeling proud of Veer’s achievements. It is a perfect family watch that makes you emotional, happy and inspires you to dream big. Watch it to celebrate another true story, and also Akshay’s 150th film as a lead hero. Stay tuned till the end if you don’t want to miss out on Surya’s cameo.
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