JioCinema's 'Tikdam' review: Small film with a large heart
Vivek Anchalia's Tikdam, which arrived on JioCinema on Friday, stars Amit Sial as a man caught at the crossroads between his kids and better financial prospects in another city. Tender, packed with hope and aspiration, and astonishingly humane, it mostly makes the right narrative choices and stays right on track. It may be a small film, but it has a large, tangible beating heart.
This is what happens in the film
Prakash lives in Sukhtaal with his parents and two young kids. When the hotel where he works closes its shutters due to a lack of tourists, he has no option but to take up a job thousands of kilometers away from home, in Mumbai. However, his kids are torn apart by this development, and with their friends, devise tikdams (tricks) to make him stay.
I didn't want to come back from this world
It may sound like the bare minimum, but films that can enchant you to the extent that you are scooped up in their world are hard to come by. Here, I felt as if I was a part of this sleepy little town nestled in hills, and the shots capture the town's beauty so vividly that you can't help but wish you could teleport!
Watch out for Sial's exemplary performance
Sial is perfectly cast as a man who is panting to catch up with the world, feeling washed up on the shore, forlorn and seemingly irrevocably deserted. Even though you may not have been in Prakash's situation ever, Sial sells the pathos incredibly well. Also, this is not a comparison of their abilities, but his mannerisms here reminded me heavily of Jaideep Ahlawat.
All characters here are equally important
One of the strongest aspects here is how everyone is given significant weightage, and depending upon how you may look at it, everyone is a protagonist in their own way. Of course, our heart beats for Prakash, but we also sympathize with his kids, while also comprehending his parents' stance. Nobody is secluded, nobody is left alone, and nobody is left at the periphery.
It's consistently entertaining, even surprisingly funny
The film adds jokes in the unlikeliest places, and I was left pleasantly surprised each time a joke popped up out of nowhere. Kids dominate the screen for most of the time, so their gags, fights, and vulnerabilities are palpable, and when the track shifts to the adults, the tone changes seamlessly, without any abrupt shifts. So, we're always immersed in Prakash's world.
The kids uplift the narrative substantially
The narrative stalls at times, and you can easily see that the film could have been at least ten minutes shorter. However, despite that, it doesn't bore you or feel overbearing, and there is enough spark and light here to keep things going. The kids' innocence, in particular, is the binding thread and reminded me instantly of films like Hamid and Dhh.
Treatment of numerous aspects in the movie
Another standout factor is Anchalia's treatment of multiple heavy themes. Usually, issues can get lost in the noise of a messy screenplay, but here, multiple aspects find centerstage: the difficulties of being a single parent, the melancholy and glamorless aspect of employment migration, the problems that infest the lives of Indian middle-class families, and of course, as subtly revealed in the trailer, environmental degradation.
Makes for a perfect weekend watch; 3/5 stars
The film is relatable on multiple levels, and the dialogues burst with emotions without being pedantic, preachy, or overly sentimental. Though I wish Anchalia had thrown a final surprise at us by opting for a different climax, it is still extremely watchable due to the strengths of its actors and its cinematography. A timely tale wrapped in a competent, touching film.
