Come 5th September Mary Kom, The Movie, besides painting the glitterati town red-red with oozing bloods, punches & bruises will 'knock an ear-deafening punch' at theatres near you but until then those who are upbeat about this biopic has to content with Mary Kom, The Trailer. Co-incidentally the slated release date will be celebrated as Teachers' Day in India, it will be a double whammy for many young wannabe boxer or world boxing champion who considers Mary as their guru & idol. But sadly, Mary's own pupil at her academy in Imphal won't have anything much to look forward to as Hindi films had been banned in Manipur since the leader of a proscribed militant outfit was shot dead by Indian armed forces more than a decade ago. Even her own folks will be devoid of watching the movie in theatres. Thanks to pirated CDs & DVDs that dotted the roadside in Imphal city, her home-folks may have a silver lining.Without further much ado, let's get to the task at hand (or is it the gloves in her hands?)-judging the movie by the trailer. And don't forget this could only be the tip of the ice-berg as no one has an inkling what the movie as a whole has in store for us. It has to speak for itself, hain na? (That's Ibobi's trademark remark, got it?) I watched the trailer in the wee hours of the night but i felt like i'm being cheated in some mysterious ways. Mary Kom without Mary Kom herself is enough reason to feel something missing.
At 00:00 viaCOM 18 motion pictures gatecrashed on the screen followed by Bhansali Productions (logo whatever), in shining armor & glamour, seconds later. Each with their disparate background musical score. It's like rotten eggs smacking against the windshield of your brand new imported car. (Pardon, my rudeness,; old habits)
A bell tolls amidst cheering crowds. Two girls in the boxing ring. The girl in blue gets knocked by the girl in red. Powerful punch it was-you can feel it.(You may cover your ears with both hands). Her 'knocked-out' unconscious body flies in mid air & before it falls you saw what appears to be the pugilist childhood: her father enquiring "Kya chupa rahi hai pichche?! Yeh ladki logon ka khilona nahi hai" (What are you hiding at the back?! This is not something for girls to play with). The li'l girl now becomes PeeCee in Mary Kom's avatar wearing shabby school uniform. A roadside romeo seeing her wearing a boxing glove taunts & push her around. Poor lad, he picked up the wrong girl & ended up bruised, cowering & begging for mercy. Bottom line: nobody messed with natural boxer which most Manipuri girls are! ;) (Guys, beware! DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME.. You'll not be as lucky as I was)
Now, with a great impact, the flying but 'comatose' body falls on the ground with a loud thud.
Next follows what appears to be the treacherous road to professional boxer:
"Tum boxer hai?" (Are you a boxer?) looking down from the ring, a certain coach asked Mary still in her untidy school uniform. "Abhi tak to sirph phaiter hai, lekin agar tum sikhayega toh boxer bhi ban jayega" (Until now i'm just a fighter but if you teach me i can be a boxer). Then, in a jiffy, begun her arduous boxing training alongside the boys of the academy. Later she is shown falling in love, becoming a world champion at international event & getting married, walking down the aisle. Reel wedding dress conspicuously has uncanny resemblance to real wedding dress. The costume designer, who ever he/she is, has learnt his/her home-work.
The following dialogue speaks for the rest of what is to unfold:
Someone,most probably her coach, is heard trying to knock some sense into Mary "Ek time World championship jeet kar bas ho gaya, boxing khatam?" (Winning World championship once and it's done, boxing over?)
Then an unseen man said in Mary's face "Aur waise bhi aap ka boxing career khatam ho chuka hai" (Anyway your boxing career is already over)
Mary is shown having 'me-time' saying this to herself "Duniya boxer Mary Kom ko bhool gaya hai, kya Mary Kom boxing bhool gaya?" (The world had forgotten boxer Mary Kom, has Mary Kom forgotten boxing?)
Then who appears to be Onler Kom, behind every successful woman; there is Onler Kom, instill confidence and new grit to Mary by saying "Tu ek fighter hai, Thoi. Aur ek fighter haar kabhi nahi maanta". (Thoi, you're a fighter. A fighter doesn't give into failure. Is it my hearing inability I heard 'thoi'; thoi is a Meetei word for 'dear')
Her coach, after Mary had twins, said with gusto "Ek aurat maa bankar bahut strong ho jata hai, aur tumhara takat ab do guna bar gaya" (A woman on becoming a mother becomes very strong and your strength has now increase two-fold)
What is supposed to be a narrator or a commentator traces the story of Mary with these lines "Ek chawal lugane wala kisan ka beti, Manipur ka chhota sa gaon se nikal kar teen bar World champion banta hai". (The daughter of a farmer, emerged from a small village in Manipur and become World champion thrice. I thought it's five, may be two more title yet to come in the later part of the movie)
Mary going berserk in what is evident to be the result of racial discrimination and step-motherly treatment meted out by the government-its establishments and its officials to people with mongoloid features in India and she says "I'm a (sic) Indian, India meri dharm hai" (I'm an Indian, India is my 'dharm'-religion, here country). This line could be a befitting reply to those Indians who calls Northeast Indians, their fellow Indians, a foreigner or refugees or for that matter chinkis.
A kurta pajama clad politician threatening the determined Mary "Tumhare sapne mein yeh jo boxing ka shabd hai na, nikal kar chodunga". (I'll erased/removed this boxing thing/word from your cherished dream)
At 00:00 viaCOM 18 motion pictures gatecrashed on the screen followed by Bhansali Productions (logo whatever), in shining armor & glamour, seconds later. Each with their disparate background musical score. It's like rotten eggs smacking against the windshield of your brand new imported car. (Pardon, my rudeness,; old habits)
A bell tolls amidst cheering crowds. Two girls in the boxing ring. The girl in blue gets knocked by the girl in red. Powerful punch it was-you can feel it.(You may cover your ears with both hands). Her 'knocked-out' unconscious body flies in mid air & before it falls you saw what appears to be the pugilist childhood: her father enquiring "Kya chupa rahi hai pichche?! Yeh ladki logon ka khilona nahi hai" (What are you hiding at the back?! This is not something for girls to play with). The li'l girl now becomes PeeCee in Mary Kom's avatar wearing shabby school uniform. A roadside romeo seeing her wearing a boxing glove taunts & push her around. Poor lad, he picked up the wrong girl & ended up bruised, cowering & begging for mercy. Bottom line: nobody messed with natural boxer which most Manipuri girls are! ;) (Guys, beware! DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME.. You'll not be as lucky as I was)
Now, with a great impact, the flying but 'comatose' body falls on the ground with a loud thud.
Next follows what appears to be the treacherous road to professional boxer:
"Tum boxer hai?" (Are you a boxer?) looking down from the ring, a certain coach asked Mary still in her untidy school uniform. "Abhi tak to sirph phaiter hai, lekin agar tum sikhayega toh boxer bhi ban jayega" (Until now i'm just a fighter but if you teach me i can be a boxer). Then, in a jiffy, begun her arduous boxing training alongside the boys of the academy. Later she is shown falling in love, becoming a world champion at international event & getting married, walking down the aisle. Reel wedding dress conspicuously has uncanny resemblance to real wedding dress. The costume designer, who ever he/she is, has learnt his/her home-work.
The following dialogue speaks for the rest of what is to unfold:
Someone,most probably her coach, is heard trying to knock some sense into Mary "Ek time World championship jeet kar bas ho gaya, boxing khatam?" (Winning World championship once and it's done, boxing over?)
Then an unseen man said in Mary's face "Aur waise bhi aap ka boxing career khatam ho chuka hai" (Anyway your boxing career is already over)
Mary is shown having 'me-time' saying this to herself "Duniya boxer Mary Kom ko bhool gaya hai, kya Mary Kom boxing bhool gaya?" (The world had forgotten boxer Mary Kom, has Mary Kom forgotten boxing?)
Then who appears to be Onler Kom, behind every successful woman; there is Onler Kom, instill confidence and new grit to Mary by saying "Tu ek fighter hai, Thoi. Aur ek fighter haar kabhi nahi maanta". (Thoi, you're a fighter. A fighter doesn't give into failure. Is it my hearing inability I heard 'thoi'; thoi is a Meetei word for 'dear')
Her coach, after Mary had twins, said with gusto "Ek aurat maa bankar bahut strong ho jata hai, aur tumhara takat ab do guna bar gaya" (A woman on becoming a mother becomes very strong and your strength has now increase two-fold)
What is supposed to be a narrator or a commentator traces the story of Mary with these lines "Ek chawal lugane wala kisan ka beti, Manipur ka chhota sa gaon se nikal kar teen bar World champion banta hai". (The daughter of a farmer, emerged from a small village in Manipur and become World champion thrice. I thought it's five, may be two more title yet to come in the later part of the movie)
Mary going berserk in what is evident to be the result of racial discrimination and step-motherly treatment meted out by the government-its establishments and its officials to people with mongoloid features in India and she says "I'm a (sic) Indian, India meri dharm hai" (I'm an Indian, India is my 'dharm'-religion, here country). This line could be a befitting reply to those Indians who calls Northeast Indians, their fellow Indians, a foreigner or refugees or for that matter chinkis.
A kurta pajama clad politician threatening the determined Mary "Tumhare sapne mein yeh jo boxing ka shabd hai na, nikal kar chodunga". (I'll erased/removed this boxing thing/word from your cherished dream)
The following line by Mary must be the one to reckon with, a pivotal one if not the climax. Trust me, it's worth a thunderous applause. "Kabhi kisi ko itna mat darrao, ki darr hi khatam ho jaye". (Don't ever scare someone so much so that one no longer gets scare).
Now, let me have the freedom to express my thoughts on the movie trailer. First thing first, I'm not saying that PeeCee didn't pulled off the role of the five time World champion to the T but in a strange & inexplicable way i felt let down. The simple reason is: if Mary Kom, after at the receiving end of uncountable social, political & economical bouts could managed to punch her way into the hearts of many, i've a strong feeling that she too can act & deserve to be herself in a movie based entirely on her real life story. Provided she is/was the first choice & some acting guru is coming forth to give her some tips. That way, justice will be done to the role & to the viewers and most importantly to Mary Kom herself. I doubt she was ever considered or approached to play herself by either Bhansali, the producer or Omung Kumar, the director. Or without making headlines, she was approached but decline as acting is not her forte. We don't know.
Keeping in view her tale of woes & the arduous journey she has had undertaken to become what she is today the film which is about her doesn't required polishing & refining in the arena (read acting).
In a biopic such as this film, 'flair' ,acting wise, isn't the most sought after 'punch'. A fair dose of 'raw '& 'crude' acting would not only be pardonable but welcoming. It will breathe life & authenticity to the character & the movie.
For once Bollywood gets the rare opportunity to change its age old movie-making mantra , outlook & get real through this film but it lets the opportunity slip by for fear of 'acceptability'& trivial Box Office earning. The film ,no matter who stars in it, as long as it holds its rein will be received well. Very much like Mary earned the hearts of 1.2 Billion nation & millions worldwide.
In a biopic such as this film, 'flair' ,acting wise, isn't the most sought after 'punch'. A fair dose of 'raw '& 'crude' acting would not only be pardonable but welcoming. It will breathe life & authenticity to the character & the movie.
For once Bollywood gets the rare opportunity to change its age old movie-making mantra , outlook & get real through this film but it lets the opportunity slip by for fear of 'acceptability'& trivial Box Office earning. The film ,no matter who stars in it, as long as it holds its rein will be received well. Very much like Mary earned the hearts of 1.2 Billion nation & millions worldwide.
Mary Kom did what she got to do. PeeCee too did what she has to do. And what is done can't be undone. No matter who is in & who is out, let's put our finger crossed, Mary Kom emerged the victor at the end of the day with respect to this movie. I hope that as much as her power-punch reign in the ring this film punch the cash register ringing at the Box Office.
All said and done I ,for one, will be missing Maneithangza's tribute song to the queen of boxing big time. The Kuki rock-star rendition of her tell-tale in musical form was gritty, glitzy and heart-rousing.
