Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram) Click here for audio version
A bunch of small-town boys band together to make a movie, a parody of the Bollywood cult classic Sholay with a twist: it will be set in their own town, with rookie actors and local jokes. So, Thakur does a shimmy at the end of their film.
Superboys of Malegaon is based on real people, made popular by the 2008 documentary by Faiza Ahmed, Supermen of Malegaon. But while the documentary was about how a group of friends make movies with minimal resources, this film, directed by Reema Kagti and written by Varun Grover, Shoaib Nazeer, and bankrolled by big names like Zoya Akhtar, is as maximalist as a filmy movie set in a small town about middle-class aspirations can be. And ironically, despite its plural indication of protagonists, it’s largely centred on Nasir Shaikh (played by Adarsh Gourav), a film freak who helps run his elder brother’s video parlour.
The story begins in 1997, the year Salman Khan’s double-role hit Judwaa was released, and continues into the 2000s, tracking Nasir’s journey as an amateur filmmaker who makes spoofs of big hits set in his small town. Nasir is assisted by his ragtag group of friends in making his desi film: videographer Akram (Anuj Singh Duhan), factory worker Shafique (Shashank Arora), writer Farogh (Vineet Singh), among others. It immediately reminded me of the 2021 Tollywood movie Cinema Bandi, which tells the story of a group of village friends making a movie with limited funds after they find an expensive camera forgotten by someone. Both movies focus on ordinary individuals who are passionate about films, although Superboys of Malegaon borrows its story from real-life individuals.
Pyaar, dosti, daaru, drama, some solid jugaad, Superboys of Malegaon has a little bit of everything on offer, including a great nostalgic soundtrack, which is backed by a fantastic cast. A small subplot follows Nasir’s love life, which includes a failed love affair and then a new romance with family friend Shabeena (Muskkaan Jaferi). Interestingly, Adarsh Gourav and Muskkaan Jaferi have instant onscreen chemistry and even look adorable together, but their romance remains a fleeting element. Manjiri Pupala plays Trupti, a dancer hired to play the heroine is Nasir’s movies, and a possible romance brews between her and the shy Shafique. I wish these other characters had more screen-time through the film.
Adarsh Gourav drives the movie as Nasir, who starts out as an aimless cinema fanatic binge-watching Bruce Lee and Charlie Chaplin movies in his free time but becomes the David Dhawan of Malegaon with his parody flicks. The creators then track the quintessential rise of a nobody, whose ego ultimately makes him crash and burn. But since Superboys of Malegaon is a filmy ode to small creators, it also gives its protagonist an emotional redemptive arc that will leave some viewers in tears; others might balk at the unexpected sappy turn of events.
One of the major conflicts of the tale is the creative difference between writer Farogh, who wants to make a film based on his ‘original’ idea, and Nasir, who is intent only on ripping off existing hits and rehashing them. Nasir focuses on comedic relief and commercial success in Malegaon, while Farogh hopes to create something more meaningful. Unfortunately, this pursuit of ‘originality’ is never realized. So, the climax is all about Nasir making yet another film, featuring the lanky Shafique playing ‘Malegaon ka Superman’, with his arc nemesis being a nefarious Gutka king who ‘loves kacchra’. It’s ridiculous yet fun.
What the real creators of the Malegaon films lacked in real life the producers of this movie had no dearth of: budget. There’s a calculated cinematic perfection in many frames that somehow makes the movie both a delight and feel slightly cosmetic. If you’re a Bollywood fan, you’ll most likely enjoy this slice of the early 2000s.
Rating: 3.5 on 5. The film on Prime Video.
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