Chandu Champion Review

If you miss its opening titles, you might take Chandu Champion to be a rehashed version of Tom Hanks' Forrest Gump (1994). But nah, Aamir Khan already messed up that classic with Laal Singh Chaddha (2022). Chandu Champion is actually a real life account of the first Indian to win Paralympics Gold Medal. It's kinda strange to watch a biopic bearing an uncanny resemblance to the fictional Gump.

A simpleton village boy Murlikant Petkar dreams big of winning Olympics gold for India. The entire village berates him and labels him Chandu Champion as an insult. Pursuing his dream, Murli learns free style wrestling, then joins the Indian army to get an entry in to International boxing domain until a bullet lodged in his spine, renders him paralysed waist down.

Not losing focus on his ambition, Murli trains hard in swimming and makes a backdoor entry in to the 1972 Paralympics. The almost impossible life story of Petkar makes for an interesting two and half hours watch on celluloid.

Director Kabir Khan keeps us invested in the underdog drama right from the first scene, where an aged Murlikant wants to lodge a FIR against the past Presidents of India for not giving him the Arjuna award he deserves...

On the technical front, Chandu Champion scores good marks, particularly the period setting as well as the war sequences are superbly executed. The 'Satyanaas' song is zanily picturised on a train. No unnecessary love angle is depicted here and Kabir Khan maturely sticks to his core plot of a common man rising against all odds!!

Having said that, the film may not appeal to the masses searching for raw and crude entertainment. While the boxing and free style wrestling matches are well shot, they lack the grit and intensity of Mithun Chakraborty's Boxer (1984) and Salman Khan's Sultan (2016). The climactic paralympic swimming tournament is again a downer, as it lacks that pulsating moment witnessed even in an intercollegiate cycle race in Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992).

The casting is great. Bhagyashri Borse as the Tokyo bred Indian journalist, leaves a mighty mark even in a small role. Vijay Raaz as Murli's mentor, is simply outstanding. The sparse audience at Movietime Starcity, Matunga where I saw the film, clapped loudly when he makes an unexpected entry in one crucial scene. Yashpal Sharma, Rajpal Yadav and Shreyas Talpade (billed as special appearance) are expectedly competent.

Finally, Chandu Champion belongs to its hero Kartik Aaryan. The guy invests heavily in to the character physically as well as emotionally and it translates fabulously on screen. Be it the desi pehelwaan Murli to a paralysed armyman lamenting his fate, Kartik is first rate in every scene he appears. He owns Chandu Champion and the film belongs to him. Totally!!

Ratings on some key aspects* :
1. Acting : 5/5 (Kartik Aaryan)
2. Direction : 3.5/5
3. Music : 3/5
4. Story, Screenplay and Dialogue : 3.5/5
5. Cinematography : 3.5/5
6. Editing : 3/5
7. Costume Design : 3/5
8. Special Effects and VFX : 4/5
9. Action : 3.5/5
10. Production Quality : 4/5

#SNRating for #ChanduChampion : 3 & 1/2 stars out of 5.

- Sumeet Nadkarni

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* - The overall film rating is not a simple average of all ratings on key aspects but a weighted average of the ratings where some crucial aspects (like direction, acting, story and screenplay etc) are assigned more weightage than others.

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#SNRatings barometer:
1 star = Poor
1 & 1/2 star = Below average/ Avoidable
2 stars = Average
2 & 1/2 stars = Above average/ Risk it
3 stars = Good enough/ Endurable
3 & 1/2 stars = Definitely worth a watch
4 stars = Very good
5 stars = Masterpiece/ Outstanding.

2024 SNRatings. 

About Sumeet Nadkarni:

Sumeet Nadkarni is a Chartered Accountant by profession and a self-styled film critic by passion. He reviews Bollywood movies and OTT releases on his popular personal blog #SNRatings. His film-related articles have appeared in leading publications in India. With a keen eye for cinematic detail and a knack for insightful critiques, Sumeet brings a unique perspective to the world of Indian cinema. Follow him for the latest Bollywood insights and unbiased film reviews. #FilmCritique #BollywoodReviewer.