In the recent times, Bollywood has witnessed many biopics, which have been made on sports personalities. Testimonies to this are in the form of the BHAAG MILKHA BHAAG (based on the athlete Milkha Singh), PAAN SINGH TOMAR (based on the athlete-turned-dacoit Paan Singh Tomar), MARY KOM (based on boxer Mary Kom) and many more. This week’s release M.S. DHONI: THE UNTOLD STORY is a biopic on M.S. Dhoni, one of India’s most sucessful and celebrated cricketers. Will M.S. DHONI: THE UNTOLD STORY manage to charm the audiences and score big at the Box-Office… let’s analyse. Fox Star Studios’ M.S. DHONI: THE UNTOLD STORY, as the title suggests, is a film about the untold and unknown aspects of Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s life. The film starts off with the iconic match that took place between India and Sri Lanka on April 2, 2011. This is followed by a series of flashbacks (read ‘insight’) into the life of MS Dhoni, who grows up with his passion of playing football. It is during one such match when his sports teacher spots his impeccable talent in goalkeeping. On his insistence, an initially reluctant Dhoni, then starts playing cricket. When Dhoni realises that he is only keeping wickets and not getting an opportunity to bat, he ‘creates an opportunity’ and starts smashing the ball in all directions, thus, impressing one and all. Things, then, start gradually moving forward for Dhoni, who, after playing for a handful of government organisations, lands up becoming a TC (Ticket Collector) at Kharagpur station and starts playing for the railways. As days pass, his job tires him physically and mentally, leaving him limited time for cricket practice. When frustration reaches its peak in Dhoni’s mind, he quits his railway job and comes back home, something that extremely annoys his father (Anupam Kher). Amidst all this, when Dhoni gets a call from the selectors to play for India, he does not play well on the ground, despite that being his first ever international match. He however gets insipired on meeting Priyanka (Disha Patani) who boosts up his morale and Dhoni regains his form. Just when life starts blooming for Dhoni, both, professionally and personally, an unexpected tragedy buoys him down miserably. Around this time, Dhoni happens to meet Sakshi (Kiara Advani). What is the calamity that stuns Dhoni, what happens to the blooming romance between Priyanka and Dhoni, what role does Sakshi play in his life and under what circumstances does MS Dhoni lead India to its historic win at the World Cup, is what forms the rest of the film. As for the performances, the film belongs wholly and solely to Sushant Singh Rajput, who is ‘MS Dhoni personified’ in every frame of the film. While his last film was the ‘forgettable’ DETECTIVE BYOMKESH BAKSHY!, Sushant Singh Rajput has given his all to make sure that his role in M.S. DHONI: THE UNTOLD STORY is simply ‘unforgettable’. There are times when you actually land up feeling that Sushant Singh Rajput has transformed into M.S. Dhoni and you never see him as an actor playing just the role. All in all, M.S. DHONI: THE UNTOLD STORY will surely be classified as Sushant Singh Rajput’s career best role. While Disha Patani makes a sparking debut with the film, Kiara Advani is average. Bhumika Chawla is decent and makes a comeback in Bollywood with this film. Veteran Anupam Kher does an exceptional role in the film. There are also many other characters in the film who form a brillaint supporting cast and make the film realistic. One has to give full marks to the casting director for the same. Even though the film’s music (Amaal Mallik, Rochak Kohli) is average, the film’s background score (Sanjoy Chowdhury) is gripping, especially during the film’s climax. The film’s cinematographer (Santosh Thundiyil) has done a fine job. The film’s editing (Shree Narayan Singh) is average. A special mention should also go to the VFX team of the film for doing a good job at masking Sushant’s face on Dhoni’s body during the match sequences, specially in the second half.Read more

If you are a diehard fan of MS Dhoni and cricket (in that order), you are bound to love this film, which reveres its protagonist. Despite the glorification, what works is Sushant’s impeccable portrayal of a stoic Dhoni and the latter’s inspiring untold story - his journey from being a ticket collector to a renowned attacking batsman/wicket-keeper/captain. Sushant internalises his character and becomes MSD, without heavily mimicking the cricketer. He even nails his iconic helicopter shot and restrained personality. The actor scores a winning knock. The film also boasts of a spectacular first-half, which showcases Dhoni’s initial struggle as an aspiring professional cricketer. It reminds you why sportsmen deserve the fame and money they get. Neeraj Pandey recreates Dhoni’s Ranchi life beautifully. He keeps it authentic and relatable. This one scene shot at Kharagpur station particularly stands out. Sushant is seen trying to make his way through a sea of people. It’s him going against the tide, summing up Dhoni’s life journey as well. Supporting actors deserve a special mention as their performances tug at your heartstrings. A scene featuring Yuvraj Singh (Herry Tangri) is outstanding. However the biopic loses its momentum in the second half with Dhoni’s love life getting undue prominence. Also, the cricketer’s questionable decisions or possible vices are mostly overlooked. His tiff with the senior players (Sehwag, Gambhir), rivalry with Yuvraj Singh, love-hate relationship with the media, team politics and criticism faced on occasions, barely find a passing reference. As a full-fledged biopic, this one-dimensional approach towards the lead character leaves you a tad discontented. But since you see the film through Dhoni’s eyes, it’s justified as one rarely sees faults in oneself. Nonetheless, this cricket movie hits sufficient sixes making the ‘Dhoni Dhoni’ chants reverberate in the theatre.Read more