By Harsha Raj Gatty
Daijiworld Media Network
Rating: 6.5 out of 10
Jun 23: To begin with, the movie 'Tubelight' is centred around a bromance between Laxman Bisht (Salman Khan) and his brother Bharat Singh Bisht (Sohail Khan) in the backdrop of the infamous Sino-Indian war of 1962.
Of course, it’s no longer a secret that the film is heavily based on the 2015-American production 'Little Boy', and has been revamped with a hint of Bollywood. Besides if you are a regular Bollywood buff you may notice that several scenes in the film pay tribute to its recent predecessors like Lakshya, Barfi, Lage Raho Munna Bhai, Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani and Kabir Khan's very own Bajrangi Bhaijaan.
While the first half of the movie quickly catches pace with action and humour, the second half is crafted to make the audience emotional and garner tear-jerking reaction. Songs in the movie are entertaining, hummable and tastefully placed.
However, unlike conventional Bollywood war films, there is very little bloodshed in this one, rather director Kabir has attempted to make this movie an emotional-entertainer focusing on the lives of those left behind by the soldiers. Kabir, once again is generous to his audience by giving ample amount of aerial shots capturing the scenic views, as well as from the Indo-Sino battle zone. The movie is well balanced in its narrative, constantly shifting back and forth at two different zones.
Producer and main lead of the film Salman Khan, after Bajrangi Bhaijaan once again tries to don the role of a simpleton Laxman Bisht. The veteran lead actor leaves no stone unturned to deliver his performance. However, the deliberate attempt by Salman Khan to speak in a childlike accent seems a little overboard and does not come across as genuine. While Sohail Khan, has a limited screen-space, he plays a significant role in the film.
But going by the character's demand in the film, both Salman and Sohail seem overweight and are over-aged for their respective roles.
The movie also pays tribute to late actor Om Puri - who plays a role of a guide and fatherly figure for the main leads in the film.
Co-stars Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub who plays the role of Narayan puts up a memorable performance as a self-obsessed person. The actor cannot be simply dismissed as a sidekick and is very versatile. Yashpal Sharma has also carried out his role as Major Rajbir Tokas with utmost sincerity.
Though by trailer and promotion one may feel that child actor Matin Rey Tangu (casted as Guo) has significant role, in reality it was disappointing to see less prominence given to his talent. Chinese female actor Zhu Zhu (who plays Guo’s mother Liling) is now the one to look out for, despite being her Bollywood debut, the female star is able to smitten her audience with her graceful acting and has even overshadowed her Indian counterpart Isha Talwar (as Maya) in the film.
Besides, Salman Khan will be sharing his screen space with Shah Rukh Khan - who will appear for a cameo role.
While earlier, Director Kabir Khan, and actor Salman Khan have tried to develop bonhomie equation between India and Pakistan in Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015), come 2017 - Tubelight ventures into similar attempt with China. Seriously, this duo must be taken onboard for negotiation with both the countries, they know the art.
On a lighter note, one might wonder if their next venture is based on Indo-Bangladesh relations.
Overall the movie is definitely entertaining and worth a watch.