[go: up one dir, main page]

Iqbal is a 2005 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age sports drama film directed and co-written by Nagesh Kukunoor.[2] Produced by Subhash Ghai, under "Mukta Searchlight Films," the story follows a cricket-obsessed deaf and mute boy from a remote Indian village as he aims to overcome difficulties to become a cricketer and fulfill his dream of playing for the Indian national cricket team. The film received the National Film Award for Best Film on Other Social Issues.[3]

Iqbal
Theatrical release poster
Directed byNagesh Kukunoor
Written byNagesh Kukunoor
Mir Ali Hussain (dialogues)
Screenplay byNagesh Kukunoor
Story byNagesh Kukunoor
Produced bySubhash Ghai
Starring
CinematographySudeep Chatterjee
Edited bySanjib Datta
Music by
Distributed byMukta Searchlight Films
Release date
  • 26 August 2005 (2005-08-26)
Running time
132 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguagesHindi
Sign language
Budget₹2.25 crore[1]
Box office₹5.60 crore[1]

The film was screened retrospectively on 18 August 2016 at the Independence Day Film Festival jointly presented by the Indian Directorate of Film Festivals and the Ministry of Defense, commemorating the 70th Indian Independence Day.[4]

Plot

edit

Iqbal is a deaf and mute boy who dreams of playing cricket for India. However, he is discouraged by his father, who thinks that Iqbal's daydreams are a waste of time. Instead, he wants Iqbal to help him tend to the crops and become a farmer like him, which would be a stable profession.

Iqbal's sister, Khadija, however, helps him try out for a nearby academy run by Guruji, an influential former India captain, who accepts him for his talent. However, when Iqbal competes with a rich boy, Kamal, who is also the star of the academy, he is thrown out by Guruji out of fear of Kamal's father, who bankrolls the academy. Iqbal seeks help from the local drunkard, Mohit, who was once a great cricketer, and persuades him to be his coach. They are able to train in a nearby field, using Iqbal's buffaloes (named after actual members of the Indian cricket team) as fielders.

Mohit trains Iqbal and gets him a place on the Andhra Pradesh Ranji Trophy team, despite the fact that Iqbal has no previous cricketing experience. Iqbal plays marvelously for the team, which was a weak team before he joined, and is soon noticed by the press and cricket selectors alike. However, when the final match of the season pits Iqbal against his rival, Kamal, Guruji tries to bribe Iqbal to bowl badly so that the national team scouts at the game would select Kamal for the national cricket team.

Iqbal succumbs to his offer out of concern for his father, who is facing financial difficulties and may lose his lands. Luckily, a sports agent is able to offer him a better deal, and Iqbal bowls with his usual fiery pace and wins the match for his team. Surprisingly, he also impresses the onlooking national team selector, Kapil Dev (in a special guest role), and wins a place in the Indian national cricket team.

In the end, Iqbal is shown donning the Indian Cricket Team's blue jersey and walking in the ground to make his international debut.

Cast

edit

Reception

edit

Vinayak Chakraborty of Hindustan Times found the movie to be Kukunoor's best work, and was favorable of Talpade and Shah's performances, noting that the former "achieves what many seasoned actors often fail to do — he makes you forget it’s actually an act."[5] Agreeing with Chakraborty, Sudhish Kamath of The Hindu wrote that "every frame oozes inspiration, every scene comes alive with candid ingenuity," and called Talpade "the find of the year."[6] The success of the film ensured its director Nagesh Kukunoor the commercial recognition.[7] The film was voted amongst the Ten Hindi Films that is ideal for Training and Motivational material.[2]

Awards

edit
51st Filmfare Awards:

Nominated

Other awards

Music

edit

The music for the soundtrack was composed by Himesh Reshammiya, Salim–Sulaiman, Sukhwinder Singh, Om The Fusion Band and Kedar–Sarosh and was released under the Tips Industries label.[8]

Track# Song Singer(s) Music Lyricist Duration (min)
1 Aankhon Mein Sapna Ravindra Upadhyay Himesh Reshammiya Sameer 4:06
2 Aashayein KK, Salim Merchant Salim–Sulaiman Irfan Siddique 4:20
3 Aashayein (Slow Version) KK Salim–Sulaiman Irfan Siddique 1:12
4 Khelenge Khelenge Sukhwinder Singh Sukhwinder Singh Subhash Ghai 4:54
5 Maula Shriram Iyer Om The Fusion Band Indraneel 5:19
6 Mutthi Mein Aasman K.K Kedar-Sarosh Vimal Kashyap 5:58
7 Paani Suresh Wadkar, Sukhwinder Singh, Shweta Pandit Sukhwinder Singh Subhash Ghai 4:26
8 Tum Tana Shriram Iyer Om The Fusion Band 4:18

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "Iqbal – Movie". Box Office India.
  2. ^ a b "Biggyan.com".
  3. ^ "53rd National Film Awards" (PDF). Directorate of Film Festivals. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  4. ^ "70 Saal – Independance Day" (PDF). dff.nic.in. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 September 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  5. ^ Chakraborty, Vinayak. "Iqbal". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 19 September 2005.
  6. ^ Kamath, Sudhish (9 September 2005). "So honest, so touching". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 17 September 2006.
  7. ^ "Archive News". The Hindu. 8 November 2009. Archived from the original on 13 November 2009.
  8. ^ Iqbal (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Himesh Reshammiya, retrieved 30 June 2021.
edit