Free Hit Danka review: Decent entertainer with cricket as the backdrop

Often films fail to live up to the promise held out by their snazzily cut trailers. But in the case of Sunil Govind Magare’s Marathi movie Free Hit Danka, it’s quite the opposite. The trailer was a haphazard compilation of scenes from the film, making one think the film would be a hodgepodge.

But the film is actually an above-average saga that should be watched once by the target audience of college students from the interiors of Maharashtra.

This is the story of a rivalry between two neighbouring villages Ughdewadi and Nigdewadi. The game of cricket plays a major role in the rivalry. Santosh aka Santya (Somnath Awghade) is the son of the Ughdewadi village head Dhumakul Patil (Suresh Vishwakarma). Santya is a carefree college student who hangs out with friends, including Andya (Tanaji Galgunde).

On the other side, Anna Patil (Anil Nagarkar) is the village head of Nigdewadi. Both Dhumakul and Anna are obsessed with cricket. For them, winning a match with the rival village means everything.

Trouble arises when Santya falls in love with Anna’s daughter (Apurva Shelgaokar). This, obviously, does not sit well with both fathers, but the youngsters are determined to get married. There comes a time when their fate rests on a cricket match.

The main plot is certainly predictable, but there are little surprises that come along. The part where Santya and his friends are having fun in college looked silly in the trailer. But the way it is presented in the context of the film does bring forth some giggles.

In such old-world love stories, we always expect the guy to go head-over-heals for the girl. Here, it’s the girl who takes the initiative to propose to the guy.

Somnath Awghade, who is known for his act in Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry (2014), plays a very different character this time round, though this character, too, is a rustic youth. Barring a few moments, he appears confident in the leading role. Apurva Shelgaokar plays a fierce but calm young woman with conviction.

Tanaji Galgunde is naturally funny yet again after Sairat (2016). There really was no need for the forced humour at certain points in the film. Suresh Vishwakarma and Anil Nagarkar as the rival village chiefs match each other with believable performances. Arbaz Shaikh, another actor from the Sairat team, does not have much to do apart from playing the cricket match.

The biggest draw in the film is the match at the end. It whets your interest and you do end up rooting for the good guys. The tennis-ball match has been shot well and is quite realistic and believable. What’s missing, however, is the large crowd that such games usually draw in rural areas. More than that, what is irksome is that the score is neither written anywhere on the ground nor given out regularly by the commentators. The last three balls of the game could also have been fleshed out instead of being rushed through. But what plays out after the match makes up for these disappointments.

Free Hit Danka does not have a storyline for a two-hour film. The plot is just about a guy and a girl falling in love followed by a cricket match to decide their fate. Therefore, to stretch the story, the writers have included several fillers. The college scenes appear fine. But the moment where the lead couple goes missing has no relevance beyond stretching the runtime. There are a few other such meaningless moments in the film.

Free Hit Danka has been released in theatres across Maharashtra.