Movie Review: Meerabai Not Out

Banner: Pritish Nandy Communications
Producer: Rangita Pritish Nandy
Director: Chandrakant Kulkarni
Star Cast: Mandira Bedi, Anupam Kher, Eijaz Khan
Music Director: Sandesh Shandilya
Cinematography: Rajeev Jain

The film directed by Chadrakant Kulkarni, “Meerabai Not Out “is a low glamour movie with a predictable storyline. The film shows a girl crazy for cricket and since we heard so many crazy cricket fans stories, she doesn’t look different or better than those fans of the game. Meera appears to be a normal girl whose mother and brother are searching for a groom for her. In fact she doesn’t look like a tomboy who plays cricket in her formed team with street boys.

The script of the film could have worked if it had new comedy dialogues associated to cricket and its characters, but nothing in the movie appears striking. In fact the film couldn’t even be like “Guddi” that was to teach Bollywood fans.

The leading lady Meera Achrekar is a mathematics teacher and she plays cricket with street boys. Her brother Manoj and mother are worried about her future and they are searching for a groom for their crazy daughter, who is in love with Anil Kumble. Meera formed a cricket team consisting of boys from her Shivaji Park chawl which is called Meera XI.

Dr. Avasthi gives free treatment for the team and he takes captain Meera on coffee date. Doctor’s father Anupam Kher wants his son to marry Meera, though he initially was not agreeing to his choice. But Meera is not interested in Doctor or anybody else, she has some crazy dream to be like Anil Kumble and to play cricket. The script is how Meera is convinced that cricket is not to get crazy about and she is diverted towards family life.

The script of the film, could have been made effective with intense performance but the characters did not get time to grow. You see too many ineffective events happening.

Manjrekar’s character as a frustrated big brother, who left cricket to take care of family, will be identifiable with many in audience. Songs are choreographed in a way to bring out poor dance skills of characters. The outer look of the film has been made to resemble middle class settings.

Anupam Kher, Mandira Bedi, Eijaz Khan, Mahesh Manjrekar and Vandana look ok in their roles. The film is more like a television show that finishes in one episode. The overall effect of the movie is average.

Rating: 3/10