Lets see here:
1. See ur family get murdered in front of your eyes, like Batman - check
2. Run away on your own and nearly become a criminal, like Batman - check
3. Use your determination to turn from underdog to unlikely hero, like Batman - check
4. Dogged by trauma from childhood, like Batman - check
5. Sacrifice love for duty, like Batman - check
In short, Milkha's story is made for the big screen. And i really liked it. Yes, it was 3 songs too long, but i've never seen slomo put to such good use in an Indian fillum. I like biopics, and i think this one ranks among the top few in Indian cinema. If it suffers, its only because the 'song and dance' routine makes it feel like fictional formula, which its anything but. I think this is where ROM falters. But his reverence for the man and his past shows, and is infectious enough.
And let us enthusiastically welcome Farhaan Akhtar into a small coterie of actors, made up of the likes of Saif Ali Khan and Abhay Deol. Actors who display such fierce commitment and talent, that it rockets them into rarefied air, where their voice sounds really funny. This is a breakout role for the man, and he swallows Milkha's identity whole, both physically and mentally. From his beady eyed grin to his peculiar gait, everything screams a flying Sikh. I dont know how close Akhtar's art was able to imitate Milkha's life, but if i had to imagine a rustic flying Sikh, who ironically is quite terrified of flying, Akhtar's potrayal would be it.
