Saala Khadoos was not as disappointing as I thought it would be. I was hoping to not have to sit through the familiar female athlete-male coach story against the backdrop of many obstacles. It would not have been worth the annoying car ride with my classmate Andrew (I think that’s his name?) Everyone else was great though. Thanks for the ride, Aurora.

I usually do not watch movies in a theater. I watch them online illegally. So being in a theater was THE culture shock for me. I was expecting it to be full, especially with the Buy 1-Get 1 deal. Indians love deals.

Anyway, here’s what I liked:

• I loved how organic the film seemed. There was so much energy in the dances. The Bollywood glamor was not present, which was refreshing.
• The Genghis Khan story was really inspiring and I liked the way it came full circle in the end.
• Madhi used the four punches she learned from Adi in the very beginning to beat Dev Sir to the floor in the end. 10/10
• Madhi did not look like the typical Bollywood actress (photo below for reference).
• Apparently, there’s a Tamil version?!?! It’s called Irudhi Suttru and since I’ve never seen a Tamil film, I’m interested in discovering the similarities and differences.

Here’s what I was sad about:

• Adi experienced so much growth throughout the movie. Madhi, on the other hand, was not presented as a fully-developed character. It would have been nice to experience her day-to-day life prior to the boxing gig. She didn’t seem like a real person with real feelings. They barely scratched the surface on that front. Perhaps that is just the part of me that was sick of seeing Adi hog screen time.
• I failed to understand some aspects of the film because there was not enough background weaved into the dialogue. What is unique about boxing in Chennai? What is the role of women in boxing in India? What does poverty really look like for these women day to day? How is boxing related to getting a police job?
• Madhi’s Dad mentioned that he got into her mom’s trap because of her light skin. I wish they had elaborated on this further. Is she North Indian? How has that played a role in Madhi’s upbringing?
• I am definitely someone who likes movies that confront social issues. I was waiting for the dialogue to delve a little deeper into the problem of alcoholism, the male-female struggle, and the very real problem of sexual harassment in India. Apparently, alcoholism is a very serious problem in Chennai and has direct correlations with domestic abuse and poverty (The New Indian Express). While viewers could see that these were problems, I was left wanting to see and learn a lot more.

Lastly, I did not realize I was sitting directly behind our Professor and her husband during the entire film. I sincerely apologize for anything that may have come out of my mouth.

Much love,

Priya

Article Source: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Over-50-Percentage-Alcoholics-in-TN-Drink-Everyday-Finds-Survey/2015/08/14/article2973618.ece

Photo Source: http://www.pinkvilla.com/files/images/the%202000’s.preview.jpg