Jhund (Herd) is a 2022 Indian Hindi language biographical sports film based on life of Vijay Barse, the founder of NGO slum soccer. This low budget Bollywood film is written and directed by Nagraj Manjule. The film features Amitabh Bachhan, Akash Thosar, Rinku Rajguru, Ankush Gedam and Abhinay Raj Singh.
The storyline of the film is all about Vijay Barse trying to bring a big reform in the world of sports by promoting these underprivileged kids from the slums by telling the authorities the importance of talent for representing India in any tournaments.
For me Amitabh Bachhan and Ankush Gedam were the stars of the film. Amitabh Bachhan as Vijay Barse showcased the desired commitment as a social worker always thinking of betterment of India in every sense especially in the field of sports. Gedam plays the role of Ankush AKA Don. The young actor portrays all the dreams and aspirations he has both on the professional as well as personal level but whether he would get an opportunity to fulfill the same is what the movie explores.
Now let’s talk about the pros and cons of the cinematic piece:
I loved the way the director Nagraj Manjule delves into the lives of people living in slum areas very realistically. The casting team has carefully chosen actors who look like children who belong to a poor background struggling to survive.
The concept/topic of the film is very interesting but the movie is unable to give its audience a strong conflict and the reason to emotionally connect with the film.
The viewers constantly want to relate with these kids similar to projects like Chak de India but the narrative keeps moving focus and therefore the audience does not get enough time to build relationships with the characters. There is nothing to remember from the film while walking out of the movie theater.
