Shahid hits a century, but the film’s length gives a sprain
JERSEY Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Mrunal Thakur, Pankaj Kapur, Ronit Kamra Direction: Gowtam Tinnanuri
Straight out of his Kabir Singh (2019) look, actor Shahid Kapoor returns to the big screen with Jersey, almost after three years since his last release. And you don’t feel he has changed one bit, at least as far as his get-up is concerned. However, stark opposite to his aggressive Kabir Singh, his Arjun Talwar in Jersey is far more restrained. Playing a failed cricketer, a doting father, and a husband trying hard to save his marriage, he carries the film on his able shoulders. While he hits it out of the park each time he’s on the field, the film shines in patches, but with a disrupted narrative, it often loses pace.
A Hindi remake of the 2019 Telugu film by the same name, Jersey is written and directed by Gowtam Tinnanuri, who helmed the original, too. And no prizes for guessing, the remake is a scene-by-scene copy of the original.
Jersey traces the tale of an exceptionally talented Ranji player Arjun, who quits cricket at 26, and after 10 years, decides to return to the game. In the process, he wants to fulfil his son Kitu’s (Ronit Kamra) desire for a jersey and the dream of seeing his father play cricket.
Along this journey, Arjun goes through emotional turmoils and several confrontations with his wife, Vidya (Mrunal Thakur).
She is the sole earning member in the family after Arjun lost his government job due to a false case. But nothing seems to stop Arjun from following his dream of playing for the Indian national cricket team. He finds support in his coach Madhav Sharma (Pankaj Kapur), who also acts as a father figure to Arjun.
High on emotions, Jersey lacks on the intrigue value that would keep you hooked. And the nearly three-hour runtime of the film makes it only worse. To begin with, Arjun and Vidya’s romance and their struggle to convince her south Indian father to marry her daughter into a Punjabi household gets a bit too stretched. Then, in the entire first half, we get to hear two things over and over again — the son wanting a jersey and the father struggling to arrange ₹500 to buy that. It’s only in the second half that we see the story moving forward. Also, the film’s only big reveal didn’t really overwhelm me. I wish the makers had thought of a different twist to make the story stand out from the original.
More than sports, Jersey highlights the dynamics of relationships. And that, I felt, lent it beautiful depth. The endearing performances while displaying these bonds actually take the cake.
Shahid’s expressions of anger, helplessness, happiness and victory strike the right chord. The Punjabi touch spread unevenly in his dialogues could have been avoided. Nevertheless, this would be among his finest performances. The film gives Mrunal ample scope to perform and she lets her expressions do most of the talking. Ronit Kamra, Shahid and Mrunal’s onscreen son, is the same kid from the original. And he’s just as good in the Hindi remake. Then there’s Pankaj Kapur, veteran in the truest sense and you instantly fall in love with his character.
The scenes on the cricket field have been beautifully shot, thanks to cinematographer Anil Mehta. The enthusiasm you feel while watching a match comes alive in these scenes.
To sum up, Jersey stays true to the sports drama genre, striking a fine balance between the game and emotional side of an athlete. Only if the makers had worked harder on the editing table and brought it to twohour something, it would have been a crisp watch.