Cricket and controversy
800
– Review
Muralidharan’s grandparents migrated from Tamil Nadu to settle down in Northern Sri Lanka and work at Kandy’s tea estates.
Riots between the Sinhalese and Lankan Tamilians dictate the fate of Murali’s relatives, who move back to Tamil Nadu, while young Murali and his parents remain in Kandy.
From here on, the movie focuses upon how Murali made his way into the Sri Lankan cricket team and how he eventually charted his milestone-laden career where he took over 800 test wickets.
Director M S Sripathy offers a unique perspective on how a cricketer’s journey stemmed from an emotion of wanting to be known for his game and not his identity.
The film also takes the opportunity to address the chucking allegations that were hurled against the cricketer by Australian cricketers and other regulatory authorities.
Madhur Mittal shoulders the responsibility of playing the Sri Lankan cricket legend and practically disappears into embodying every mannerism and expression that is known to popular perception.
Ghibran’s powerful score is one of the major strengths of the movie. RD Rajasekar’s cinematography is impressive. Rest of the technical aspects are good as well.