I am Kalam! Movie review

:I am Kalam:

 Rating: *********

Star cast: Harsh Mayar, Gulshan Grover, Pitobash Tripathy, Husaan Saad, Beatrice Ordeix, Meena Mir, Sanjay Chauhan.

What’s Good: Master Harsh Mayar’s natural performance; the well-intentioned subject; the cinematography.

What’s Bad: The slow pace of the narrative; the botched climax; lack of emotions in the drama.

Verdict: I Am Kalam will get critical acclaim and appreciation from the classes but its box-office prospects are rather dull.

Watch Or Not?: Watch I Am Kalam for Harsh Mayar’s performance.


Directed By: Nila Madhab Panda

Chottu (Harsh Mayar), a young and smart boy, works at aroadside dhaba in Rajasthan. Inspired by President APJ Abdul Kalam, Chottu wants to study further but cannot as his family is very poor. Incidentally, he makes friends with the young son of the erstwhile Maharaja of the area.??????????????

I am Kalam (and I am not a scientist?), is the story of a little boy, Chotu (Harsh Mayar), who works with his jolly uncle Bhati mama-sa (Gulshan Grover) at a dhaba in a dusty touristy small town inRajasthan. The place is embellished with yawning camels and local instruments are blown out of proportion to make for a background score. Chotu's work mate is the characteristically human earwig, Haddi/ Laptan (Pitobash Tripathy) whose presence is more inconsequential than a few pots and pans used at the dhaba. But Chotu's rather controversial relationship is his friendship with the minor heir of the land, kunwar-sa (prince) Ranvijay (Husaan Saad). Predictably, the two find each other's lives intriguing and magical. Chotu loves to study and Ranvijay has the books. You do the math.

As soon as Chottu starts working at the dhaba, he earns the admiration of Bhati and the foreigner guests at the dhaba because of his intelligence and flair for languages. He also spends a considerable time reading books and listening to the speeches of the president of India, APJ Abdul Kalam, which he finds inspiring. Chottu even starts addressing himself as Kalam. The simple-minded Laptan grows jealous of the attention Chottu has been getting.

Chottu also befriends Ranvijay (Hussan Saad), the son of the erstwhile Maharaja of the area, and the duo spends a lot of time together, playing and studying, in spite of the Maharaja (Sanjay Chauhan) asking his son not to spend time with kids who do not belong to the same class. Chottu also endears himself to Lucie (Beatrice Ordeix), a French lady, with whom Bhati is secretly in love. Lucie promises Chottu that she’d take him to Delhi to meet the president.

Soon, Chottu’s dreams start crumbling one by one. A jealous Laptan burns his books; Bhati, who is emotionally hurt to learn that Lucie is a married woman, slaps Chottu; his secret friendship with Ranvijay is exposed; and he is taken by the Maharaja, to be a thief, is beaten and asked never to come back into the heritage hotel, where the Maharaja stays, ever again.

While the film deals with the serious issue of education for all, this topic has loomed large over our country for long enough to have any novelty. Now, it just seems like a desperate plea for global attention.