Vijay 69, Akshay Roy’s sophomore effort streaming now on Netflix, aims to look at the triumph of the underdog – in this case, a senior citizen who decides to participate in a triathlon. While the idea sounds good at a conceptual level, much of the potential inherent in the story remains frustratingly untapped, thanks to the film’s oversimple narrative.
Vijay 69 looks at Vijay Mathews (Anupam Kher), who has lived a life marked by missed opportunities and limited success. One day, a prayer meeting is organized in his honour as he is mistakenly believed to have committed suicide. Vijay unexpectedly turns up at the church during the memorial service, startling everyone. Looking at the eulogy prepared by his close friend Fali (Chunky Pandey), he realizes he is seen as a failure despite having once had the potential to earn recognition as an ace swimmer. Given a second chance by fate, Vijay decides to prove his worth by entering a triathlon competition…
In a film where sport serves as a medium for reclaiming one’s identity or redeeming oneself, the protagonist normally faces enough obstacles to overcome for us to root for him/her and be emotionally invested in the story. Vijay 69 remains more than aware of this trope, but the various plot points feel more like a stereotypical checklist being ticked off rather than give the film an organic flow. Due to this, the film never quite achieves the gravitas it needed. The unfolding of events neither moves us to shed tears over Vijay’s plight nor offers any perceptive insight into coping with and overcoming the pain of a lifetime of failures. While the film aims for a light and comedic tone, its simplistic treatment often drifts into superficiality, making the humor feel more ludicrous than clever.
Vijay 69 is primarily crafted as a showcase for Anupam Kher, who brings his expected nuances and heft to the role, elevating the film’s occasional bursts of saccharine sentimentality. With his superior acting prowess, he becomes the sole reason should we wish to invest our time in the narrative or his character. However, the secondary characters like a young social media influencer, a ruthless journalist, a zealous coach, and an overly caring neighbour are laboriously fleshed out but ultimately fall short of depth in the natural scheme of things.
Of the supporting cast, Chunky Pandey loudly plays Vijay’s close friend, Fali, with a highly exaggerated Parsi accent, rendering his character as little more than a stereotypical caricature. As does Vrajesh Hirjee in his role as the enthusiastic coach. Aditya Jaiswal, as the young competitor to Kher, is fine enough while Sulagna Panigrahi as Vijay’s overprotective daughter has her poignent moments. One wishes her character had more screen time to make a stronger impact. Guddi Maruti, portraying the concerned neighbour Mrs Bakshi, brings just the right amount of tenderness to the film as she frets over Vijay’s well-being.
Sahil Bhardwaj’s cinematography adds warmth to the story and the characters with its nuanced play of light and shadow while Meenal Agarwal’s production design authentically captures the film’s setting and milieu. Manas Mittal’s editing ensures a smooth and seamless flow despite being let down by the weak writing. Pritam Das’s effective sound design and Gaurav Chatterjee’s score succeed in enhancing the film’s emotional tone.
Though Vijay 69 has a promising and pertinent premise, it fails in successfully translating the idea from script to screen as well as it could have. One could say the film loses the race well before it reaches the finish line.
Hindi, Drama, Color