The lesson we learn from Taapsee Pannu's performance in the Mithali Raj biopic Shabaash Mithu is that you don't necessarily have to win to be termed a winner. Director Srijit Mukherji introduces the suffering of the Indian Women's Cricket Team in the opening scenes, which is striving not only to win a game but also for basic needs like food, shelter, cricket kits, and much more. The director also adds a refreshing take to the story by focusing on Mithali Raj's early years and going deep into how exactly she found her hidden passion for the game. It's a story that captures not only the rise of a legend named Mithali Raj but also the rise of the Indian Women's Cricket Team at a global level.
Anyone can follow Mithali Raj's road to success for the nation by taking a holistic view of her life. What begins as a personal battle, eventually ends up being a fight for the team, to be noticed in a country like India where they worships the male cricketers. The main conflict of the movie starts during the dramatic section, and Srijit succeeded in making a point without overly going on the face of the male vs female stigma.
During the run time of two hours and thirty six minutes the screenplay of Shabaash Mithu does tend to get repetitive, especially in the first half. There are certain scenes that also gives nostalgia of sports dramas like Chak De India, Dangal, Saina, and even Gunjan Saxena. But rather than a issue with the filmmaking, this has to do with an overdose of the biographical genre. The rest of the ensembles do well.
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All in all the movie is worth watching to witness the jouney of a woman, who is responsible for the great rise of the India's Women's Cricket in last two decades.
