Sam Bahadur movie review: If you go in to watch Sam Manekshaw’s biopic Sam Bahadur as a Meghna Gulzar movie – because let’s be honest, she is one of the most nuanced and focussed filmmakers around – you’d be surprised. This is not a Meghna Gulzar show but a Vicky Kaushal one. It is his world and we are just living in it.
Kaushal has shown his acting prowess over and over with superlative performances in movies like Masaan, Raazi, Udham Singh, Uri, so there was perhaps no doubt that he would deliver yet another powerful and detailed performance. But what hits you when you watch Vicky Kaushal’s Sam Manekshaw is rather different.
With the danger of this review turning into a paean for Kaushal, this one thing must be said – Vicky Kaushal has been perfectly cast by Gulzar. Perhaps what helps the actor translate the Field Marshal on screen is also the way Gulzar has written him, along with Bhavani Iyer and Shantanu Srivastava. It does feel like the language of a woman, so it is no wonder that 'Sam Bahadur’ here is a woman’s man – the perfect mix of bahaduri, charm and kindness.
Sam Manekshaw, a young soldier in the army in pre-Independence India, when he was attached to a British regiment, does not have much consideration for rules. He is the one to break them, and then land in trouble too. But he is dashing, confident and vocal, qualities that sweep over even the harshest of critics. He meets his wife Siloo, played by Sanya Malhotra, at a party and quickly gets married, has two kids and continues serving the army, where he is also friends with Yahya Khan, played by Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub.
Once India and Pakistan are separated, Kashmir lands in trouble. But India has Sam Maneckshaw, who is instrumental in getting Maharaja Hari Singh sign the accession treaty within a matter of hours. When the Chinese land near Assam’s Tezpur and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, played by Neeraj Kabi, gives up hope, Sam Manekshaw is sent to the northeastern state to handle the situation. He reaches there and decides the troops need some solid morale-boosting.
Manekshaw is sent to handle the insurgents in the northeastern states, for which he receives the Padma Bhushan. He is sent to help Bangladesh in its liberation campaign from Pakistan. Manekshaw is sent to tackle a wide range of issues from wars to internal strife. And he stands tall each time.
But Vicky Kaushal’s Manekshaw’s biggest achievements are not in the battlefield or in war strategizing, it is his kindness and respect for the junior-most soldiers. The no-nonsense army chief, speaks out when and as he pleases, but is never cruel or ruthless to his juniors. That’s where the magic of Gulzar and co’s writing lies.
However, you’d wish Gulzar, Iyer and Srivastava had extended the same courtesy of detailing and careful crafting to the other characters – Vicky Kaushal could have very well been talking in an empty room. Apart from Malhotra’s Siloo, who has been given barely any screen time with even negligible dialogues, and Fatima Sana Shaikh’s Indira Gandhi, the rest are just stepping stones to accentuate Manekshaw’s dashing and daring.
Sanya Malhotra does the best she can with whatever little she has been given, but Fatima Sana Shaikh – although an outstanding actor herself – has been spectacularly miscast. Sheikh’s inexperience – and perhaps the lack of a good briefing – shows from the moment she walks in to talk to her father, Jawaharlal Nehru.
Sam Bahadur is eventually a treat for all Vicky Kaushal fans, in fact, even the ones who are not his fans. He shines bright and everything else dims a bit.