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Vijay 69 review: How does one review a film where the actors do their job well, but… nothing is going for the story. After all, they acted to bring the story to life, right? It becomes tougher when you have a heartfelt subject, let down by the film being a boring affair. Vijay 69 belongs to this club. It’s like an ECG graph- the straight kind. You wish it goes up and down, but it’s a dead end, pun unintended. (Also read: Vijay 69 trailer: Anupam Kher fights age, family and society to pursue his dream of competing in a triathlon. Watch)
What is Vijay 69 about
The story revolves around 69-year-old Vijay Mathew (played by Anupam Kher, himself 69 in real life), who wants to achieve something big so that there’s something for his friend to say in an eulogy after he dies. His wife had passed away battling cancer years ago, and taken a promise from him: he should not stop living his life. He decides that he will become the oldest person to complete a triathlon: 1.5 km of swimming, 40 km of bicycling, and 10 km of running. Old age poses a big challenge to Vijay. Is he able to achieve this lofty goal? Watch the film to know the rest.
Old age isn’t meant for only retirement—the film’s message is loud and clear. Now, where have I seen this before? Kher’s 2022 film Uunchai, in which Amitabh Bachchan’s character wants to climb Mount Everest. Here, the triathlon is his Everest.
Vijay 69 starts off on a bright note, with a light-hearted funeral scene (gosh, the irony)- but then that’s what the filmmakers must have wanted- to take the seriousness and worry out of conversations about impending death.
Akshay Roy, who is behind the story, screenplay, dialogue and direction, is able to establish Vijay’s pain effectively. The fear of dying without achieving something the world remembers you by- the scare is limited to not just our elders, but even the younger generation. What am I doing with my life- it’s quite certain the question has crossed your mind at some point, and Kher’s character realises that as he literally stares at the coffin his friends got for him in the first scene, presuming he’s dead.
Where it goes wrong
Till here, you stay with the film. Then it goes nowhere. Akshay tries to build up to moments which try to connect with the audience. You see the dichotomy- children are pressured by their parents to achieve and do something, and the aged are pressured by their children to live an inhibited life, keeping their age in mind. But one doesn’t sit through a film for close to two hours for such moments, which are sparse. Do the maths, I am sure your scooter or car gives better mileage than this.
The conflicts are so petty. Actually, there is no conflict. I mentioned the straight ECG line, right? Things simply unfold on screen without evoking any emotions. Vijay wants to participate, people don’t let him, but then they let him. The media is villainised as if we have no better job than to run around with a camera and put down a 69-year-old man by weaving fake stories. That entire portion is so amateur, including the fake rivalry between Vijay and a young triathlon participant.
As for the performances, Anupam puts in his best to make Vijay a likeable and relatable character. The pain of losing his wife and leading an achievement-less life is brought out beautifully by him. But even he can act so much to salvage a boring screenplay.
Chunky Panday as his Parsi best friend has hammed so much. That was certainly not the character’s demand because this isn’t another instalment in the Housefull franchise.
It is nice to see Guddi Maruti, a comedic relief in Hindi films of 1980s and 90s, being given a decent role here after a long time. Mihir Ahuja does well. Vrajesh Hirjee has a cameo as Vijay’s coach, but even his comic chops cannot lift the disappointing humour in the script.
To sum it up
Vijay 69 is one of those films which people start watching with great interest, then lose it, scroll through their phones, watch a couple of scenes, go about some chores around the house, come back to watch the climax, and the end. Simply put, Vijay 69 is far too simplistic for its own good.
