Movie Review: Gunjan Saxena – The Kargil Girl
Movie Review: ‘Gunjan Saxena – The Kargil Girl’
Rating: 4/5
Director: Sharan Sharma
Cast: Janhvi Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Angad Bedi, Vineet Kumar Singh, Manav Vij.
The film chronicles the incredible real life story, struggles and gender based discrimination faced by former Indian Air Force pilot Gunjan Saxena (played by Janhvi Kapoor). Known as the ‘Kargil Girl’, Gunjan was honoured with the Shaurya Vir award for displaying exemplary courage during the Kargil war in 1999.
The film starts off on a plane where young Gunjan is thrilled when an air hostess takes her to the cockpit of the plane she’s flying in, dazzled by what she sees there and decides to become a pilot upon growing up. The film is a homage to the father-daughter relationship. Gunjan (Janhvi Kapoor) is brought up by her father (Pankaj Tripathy) to be an independent girl. He’s beside her during every crisis. For instance, when she’s asked to reduce weight, he takes it upon himself to wake her up early morning and trains her diligently, making sure she reaches the required weight on time. There’s a powerful scene where her brother (Angad Bedi), questions their father’s wisdom in supporting her and Tripathy’s curtly dismisses him. Another scene has him getting angry when she wishes to give up her dream to get married. And when she shares her doubts about patriotism, he assures her that her pursuit of excellence is all that the country needs. The bond between them is as real as it gets. Follow Spotlife Asia for the latest entertainment and lifestyle news.
Sharan Sharma, who makes a compelling directorial debut with this film, captures the gender dynamics with honesty and poise. It’s rare for an Indian biographical film to show people just the way they are. Sharma calls out the sexism faced by Gunjan in the Armed Forces not to exploit her story but to begin a conversation. His gaze towards his characters is realistic, yet, humane and heartfelt. While the film compels you to redefine patriotism and battle patriarchy, at heart, it is a poignant ode to a father-daughter relationship. Two people who never give up on each other. Their respective roles fit Pankaj Tripathi and Janhvi like a glove. They convince you that there couldn’t have been a better pair to essay these roles. While Tripathi brings in his famous effortless brilliance (he is to Gunjan, what Shabana Azmi was for Neerja), Janhvi Kapoor is a revelation. Not only is she age appropriate for her role, her eyes mirror Gunjan’s childlike exuberance as well as shades of sorrow and anger at being conveniently side-lined by her sexist superior (Vineet Kumar Singh as the Wing Commander). The actress is impeccable as Gunjan Saxena. Vineet and Angad Bedi get one-dimensional characters with limited scope, yet, they aren’t forgettable.
The film has pulled no punches when it comes to telling Gunjan’s story. Air Force pilots are all Alpha males who court danger every time they take off. IAF has been a male bastion for years and it wouldn’t have been easy for them to be inclusive of female officers. The chauvinism Gunjan faces is hard-hitting and real. She’s constantly been warned about it by her brother, who knows the system inside-out. Her emotional response to the harassment she faces is counted as a weakness by her fellow officers. She isn’t shown to be wilting willow, and politely but firmly asks questions about why she’s been subjected to such behaviour. She gets accepted when she shows exemplary skills during a difficult rescue mission, winning the admiration of her brother officers. The standing ovation she gets is a tribute to her grit, determination and valour.
More than anything else, Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl is a deeply moving tale of a feminist father and his feisty daughter. It wages war against patriarchal mind-set and discrimination, and identifies it as a bigger threat to progress than the one we perhaps tackled in 1999.
