Well towards the end of the year I kept seeing people debating about a certain mass entertainer movie. Whether it was good or not, whether it was a women empowerment movie or not, whether it was a sports movie or not… In that a lot of people missed out on an actual sports movie that focused on women empowerment. Even I wouldn’t have watched it. But the same Vijay fan who dragged me to Bigil, dragged me to Kennedy Club because Bharathiraja plays a role in it. Honestly I have to thank that guy.
This movie had better analysis of the sports involved and gave an even better character development for the players involved. Not the hero who comes to help them out. Both the above mentioned movies have a similar plot. The coach who has been coaching a girls’ team is hospitalized and they are in need of a substitute coach. The substitute coach is not that well known among the girls, but he shows them that he can be trusted with his coach like decisions and they train under him. He helps them go until the finals and they win as well. All the while manoeuvring through sports politics and ego amongst the players themselves.
In Bigil, the director lost focus on what he started, or the whole football team was a ruse to just glorify the hero and focused on the coach who never made any proper coach like decision, or showed the girls how to improve on their techniques or even gave them any confidence in any way. He just gives monologues here and there and some of them don’t even make sense. Whereas in Kennedy Club, the coach who comes in listens to the previous coach and takes a decision based on his observations as well. He benches two players in the first preliminary game to make the team understand that they are key players. He asks the team to go on defense against a certain team because he has done his research about the teams and their techniques. Where exactly does women empowerment come in bigil? I have no idea. I saw that movie almost 3 times and every single lady in that movie wants Bigil to come save the day. Why do talented players need a coach by the benches? Don’t they have any self confidence? Didn’t their coach teach them enough that they won’t play well unless this person is present and nods his head?
Kennedy club focuses on these girls winning the finals so they could get a decent government job in sports quota. The coaches are not trying to glorify anyone or anything. They are trying to show the girls a way in which they could improve their own lives. Now that is more feminism if you ask me. They teach team work, teach how to handle a loss and teach how to have fun even if they are at rock bottom. It showed how politics is woven through the field than bigil tried to show.
Lets try one more example…
Both movies have a certain star player getting married off. Both movies have the coach talk the husband into letting his wife play for the team. Both movies have the husband happily bringing his wife to be reunited with the team. But see how someone can support a dream without making anybody crying.
Likewise I don’t understand why I still keep seeing social media debates and mentions about Bigil when nobody batted an eyelash about this movie which was much more realistic and dealt with actual problems people face if they want to pursue a career based on sports. This was one of the under appreciated movies of 2019 and that is just sad.