Akshay Kumar strikes gold in Gold. The movie’s plot revolves around fictional hockey manager Tapan Das (Kumar), a drunk out-of-control con, who wants to lead an independent India in 1948 to win gold in London’s Olympics.
Das won three gold medals as a manager with the British India team over three consecutive Olympics (1928, 1932 and 1936), before the Olympics were suspended due to the Second World World until 1948.
His dream of having the Indian flag and national anthem haunted him over the years, and he convinces the Indian Hockey Federation to allow him to form a team.
However, the independence shattered his team with some players leaving to Pakistan, while others left for Australia and Britain.
Lack of funding, a place to train and internal problems within the federation forced Das to go to a Buddhist monastery where he finds support as the guru is a fan of the team’s coach Samrat (Kunil Kupoor), the former captain of the British Indian team.
Kumar carries the movie with his outstanding performance, but supporting actors help him reach the audience with the feeling of patriotism, determination, and sense of pride, especially since the movie release coincided with India and Pakistan’s independence days.
The movie could have scored higher should director Reema Kagti made it longer by adding more layer to supporting actors within the team.
Some would say Indian movies that run for three hours are already long enough and could become boring, but in this 153-minute movie, it could have been different as an additional 20 minutes or so would have made the story perfect.
Gold has all the elements to make it a must-see film, it has the Bollywood style of suspense, music and dance in addition to humour, while also maintaining its drama.
The supporting cast of Mouni Roy as Das’ wife, Amit Sadh as Raghubir Pratap Singh, Sunny Kaushal as Himmat Singh, and Nikita Dutta as Simran also deserve praise for their performances.
Gold is being screened in Vox Cineco City Centre, Seef Cineplex, Saar Cineplex, Wadi Al Sail, Mukta A2 and Vox The Avenues.