Ghoomer: A Long Justification For Terrible Men

Ghoomer: R Balki’s Film Is A Long Justification For Terrible Men

This is #CriticalMargin, where Ishita Sengupta gets contemplative over new Hindi films and shows.

Dir: R Balki

Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Saiyami

Playing in: Theatres

HINDI films, especially those centering on sports, often depict male brilliance a certain way. It manifests in tortured, self-destructive men, in a prolonged war with themselves. Two of the most iconic sports films in the last two decades, Nagesh Kukunoor’s Iqbal (2005) and Shimit Amin’s Chak De! India (2007) feature broken and astute men who aspire for redemption through someone else. Granted this is not a definitive reading — but irascible, tormented men are often treated as a shorthand of brilliance just as this distinct brand of brilliance is used to absolve irascible, tormented men. Ghoomer, R Balki’s latest outing, unfolds as a reiteration of this troubled, gifted male coach-meets-prodigy premise, blithely heedless about its datedness and problematic undertones.

Padam Singh Sodhi aka Paddy (Abhishek Bachchan) is a snappy, irritable alcoholic who spends his time demeaning everyone around him. He is a prick. Many years ago, in the ‘70s, he was selected in the Indian cricket team. While playing his first match, he suffered an injury which diminished his chances of playing for the team again. Although he made runs at the state level, his selection in the national team remained a faraway dream. Someone else might have started a coaching institute, probably even moved on. Not Paddy. Wearing an oversized hoodie and eyes sunk in, he reeks of bitterness still and uses his membership to an upscale cricket club to drink whiskey during happy hours. Then there is Anina (Saiyami Kher), a bright, upcoming cricketer whose towering talent ensures an early selection in the Indian cricket team. But on the day of the announcement, she meets with an accident and loses her right arm.

Seven-feature film-old Balki has a gimmick-sized problem. Take any of his work and his eagerness in opting for quirky concepts surfaces as a nagging pattern: a 30-something woman falls in love with a 60-something man (Cheeni Kum, 2007), a mute actor borrows voice from someone else (Shamitabh, 2015) and tricks the rest, film critics are killed for their dishonest reviews (Chup: Revenge of The Artist, 2022). This, of course, would not have been a problem (Ayushmann Khurrana would have fewer films in that case) if his treatment was not facile. The filmmaker’s preoccupation to dazzle with an off-kilter idea is so strong that it overhauls everything else, rendering the central plot gimmicky in its intent.

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