The film is a fictionalised account of Mangalyaan, the ISRO Mars program that was launched in 2013. A group of dedicated and ingenious Indian scientists – most of them women – behind this ambitious endeavour, tell us a 2-year-struggle of how it begins and ends in a massive triumph. Lots of science, lots of statistics, lots of calculations, lots of complicated theories- How entertainingly could the film deliver for the mass audience? This is indeed, the real rocket science of film making and story telling which Mission Mangal phenomenally and beautifully has figured it out!
One of the well-thought concepts in this film is how these scientists work on a tight-budget to make the mission possible and comes up with solutions, inspired by what they observe in their daily lives. One of them sees plastic waste on the street and conceptualizes a biodegradable, lighter satellite. Another notices boat-sails stitched into her cushions and decides to re-design the wings of the satellite. Another applies the home science of frying puris to extend the fuel plan of the rocket. Even though the question pops up, “Is that so easy to solve space science problems from puris?” The answer is a surprising yes. It is the small ideas behind simple things that set feasible avenues to solve greater problems not only for space science, but for life itself.
Mission Mangal is actually a feel-good toast girl power, and the massive advantage is its female cast. Vidya Balan, Sonakshi Sinha, Taapsee Pannu, Kirti Kulhari and Nithya Menen get well-crafted roles that fit seamlessly to give the film its multistarrer entirety. As a die-hard Vidya’s fan, it was pure joy to watch her as the boss lady. She is in cracking form as the sprightly sari-clad matriarch. The way in which she gamely shepherds a motley group of scientists to execute a near-impossible space mission to Mars makes for some delightful viewing.
Each of the female characters gets a well-crafted introduction. The striking contrast between their jobs and their individual personalities gets interesting as the story flows- for instance, Tapsee who is in the navigation and communication department struggles to navigate through the roads during her driving lesson. To a large extent, the women do their bits to perfection.
Sonakshi Sinha as a scientist yearning to work for Nasa in the US, Taapsee Pannu as an army man’s devout wife and Nithya Menen as a pregnant woman with a vicious mother-in-law breathe life into their characters with their restrained performances. Kirti Kulhari as Neha Siddiqui, a Muslim divorcee, makes a point about the discrimination she faces while trying to rent a home in Bengaluru.
There are many taboo topics sprinkled in this narrative— but all of those progressive elements are strictly superficial in the film. And that is probably the drawback in this film. The creative challenge in mixing and exploring many themes seem to be evident in Mission Mangal. Without these elements, it could probably have been a boring documentary. Adding these elements, in a way, has restricted the writers to go deeper as they have to sustain the main idea of the film.
Another drawback is that the over-simplification and reduction of the complexities make us wonder if launching the rocket to Mars was that an enormous a task. When a 2-year-tale has to be condensed to a 2-hour story, it bound to happen. It becomes an additional responsibility for the audience to keep reminding ourselves the fact that this isn’t exactly how it happened, rather, what we are watching at the moment is a dramatized version of the real incident.
However, what makes this exhilaratingly schmaltzy fact-based drama about India’s epochal launch of a Mars-bound satellite a rousing crowd-pleaser, is how these scientists are not just caged in their offices, and shown as just super smart researchers, but these are normal people like you and me who have their fair shares of ups and downs in both their professional and personal lives.
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