Kaun Pravin Tambe Movie Review: Shreyas Talpade got his breakout success playing a cricketer with a disability that could have been a roadblock to his ambitions in Iqbal back in 2005, but doesn't. 17 years later, Talpade plays a cricketer again in Kaun Pravin Tambe? with age being the roadblock to his career this time. Only that Iqbal is a fictional story, while Kaun Pravin Tambe? is the biopic of cricketer Pravin Tambe, who made his IPL debut at the age of 41 and his Ranji debut also the same year. Does the real-life inspirations make this movie a more inspirational saga? Kaun Pravin Tambe?: Here’s All You Need To Know About Indian Cricketer Pravin Tambe Who Inspired Shreyas Talpade’s Character in Disney+ Hotstar Movie.

Directed by Jayprad Desai and written by Kiran Yadnyopavit, Kaun Pravin Tambe? chronicles the life of Tambe from his childhood in humble lower-middleclass setup that carries to his youth where he is a talented but struggling cricketer who hits the Shield matches thanks to a stroke of luck and then his almost never-ending struggle to hit the big leagues. In between, he gets married to Vaishali (Anjali Patil), who is supportive of his ambitions but worried about his wavering interest in their domestic life.

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We also learn about how Tambe's reluctance to shift his bowling style from medium pacer to spin hampering his chances to make it to Ranji selection, and then age doing him in. While it takes a by-the-numbers approach in narrating his life story, the simplistic storytelling works in favour of the movie. Kaun Pravin Tambe? does a fairly good job in keeping Pravin's life story engaging enough. Especially in his camaraderie with Vaishali, and also with his coach played by Ashish Vidyarthi, who I believe is a standin for cricketer Sandeep Patil. There is a sense of likeability in these scenes, with enough help from the performers here. The feel-good approach also works in experiencing the humble setup from where Tambe comes from, the awkward double first night scene at his small house is both hilarious and still manages to be a window into how many people in the city continue to live in. The movie also plays around some callbacks that I dug in, like how during a match-making scene, Pravin is mocked for only being known as his elder brother's sibling, which gets a subtle reversal in the last act. Cheesy, but never made over-dramatic.

Of course, like most of the biopics made in Bollywood with the blessings of the subject, Kaun Pravin Tambe? is rather interested in painting its protagonist either as a victim or a victor, never exploring the greys in between. Blame it on my love for Iqbal, but Tambe's struggles to crack into the big league or even in his bonding with his coach or his wife doesn't have the same depth as what we saw in the Nagesh Kukunoor film. The wife is either bickering or supportive, there is no inbetween, as we never get to see how she manages the household when he is spending more time at his work and on the pitches.

However, the biggest drawback of Kaun Pravin Tambe? is the character of Rajat Sayal (Parambrata Chatterjee), a sports correspondent, who also sums up as the film's narrator. The film lazily sets up his antagonistic attitude towards Pravin, and I continued to ponder why he maintains that attitude throughout the movie. Is it because his point was proven wrong during their first interaction, or because he had lost a bet because he trusted Tambe's matchwinning skills in a Shield match? I am not very sure, and Sanyal's continued presence feels a very weak purpose to add some antagonism to Pravin Tambe's life when it didn't need any. Like that dance bar scene, where Sanyal insults Tambe where the latter is working as a waiter to make his ends meet. It was pointless, and does nothing but to paint Sanyal like a privileged prick. OTT Releases of the Week: Rishi Kapoor’s Sharmaji Namkeen on Amazon Prime Video, Oscar Isaac’s Moon Knight, Shreyas Talpade’s Kaun Pravin Tambe? On Disney+ Hotstar and More.

There is also a needless scene of a male character being dressed as a woman and asked to worship Tambe after losing a challenge. Why? Even if it might have happened in real life, didn't anyone tell the makers that such a scene is quite problematic in its nature?

What very much works in the biopic's favour is the earnestness that Shreyas Talpade, seen in a major role in a Bollywood film after a long time, display in his performance. This is what makes us root for his character's journey, despite knowing the roadmap that it is going to take, and buy into his stubborn determination to not quit on his dream. Bar the Sanyal presence, I was more invested in how Tambe's challenges came within himself, his reluctance to heed an advice that if he did earlier, could have brought him early success. How he works over himself and aided by Talpade's fine act, the biopic cruises along nicely despite those aforementioned hiccups. This might not be Iqbal, but Talpade makes Kaun Pravin Tambe? quite an engaging and likeable watch.

PS: (Some SPOILERS ahead) The climax of the film deals with Tambe's breakout moment in IPL 2014 where he scored a hattrick against KKR, while playing for RR. A little dramatic approach aside - commentators droning on too much about what a risk it is to give him the ball - the director did quite a decent enough job to splice real footage with Talpade's scenes to recreate the match. While it ends on a euphoric moment for the protagonist, and the epilogue details his career after that match, it fails to mention about IPL banning him because he chose to play in another league. Could have been an interesting footnote to an already interesting journey.

Yay!

- Shreyas Talpade

- No Frills Storytelling Has Its Advantages

Nay!

- Isn't Ground-breaking in its Storytelling

- The Rajat Sanyal Subplot

Final Thoughts

Kaun Pravin Tambe? comes across as a sincere attempt to tell an inspiring story of sportsman who never saw his age as a bar, helped by an earnest performance from Shreyas Talpade, and fine support from Anjali Patil and Ashish Vidyarthi. Kaun Pravin Tambe? is streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.

Rating:3.0

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 01, 2022 10:01 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).