Jersey – Movie Review

Jersey starring Nani and Shraddha Srinath in the lead roles explores the story of a passionate cricketer, who is in his mid-30s coming back from retirement to fulfil his dream. Gowtam Tinnanuri, the man behind one of the most underrated gems of 2017, Malli Raava, serves as the director with Anirudh Ravichander as the music director and Sanu Varghese as the cinematographer for the film.

The storyline kicks off in the year 1996 with Arjun (Nani), a retired cricketer who is in dire need of money, delight and gratification in his normal day-to-day life. His wife Sarah (Shraddha Srinath), supports him financially to an extent, but, his lack of interest in everything he does directs to everyday arguments at the household. Eventually, he decides to follow his heart and strives to get back on the cricketing field at the age of 36. Will he succeed in fulfilling his dreams and get enough emotional support from his family and friends?

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Right from the opening scene in 1996, Gowtham Tinnanuri clocks up a challenging task by making his core characters very relatable: A father who has a million things against him but always makes sure that his son always puts on a happy face; a wife and a girlfriend who only hopes to see her man bear a resemblance to his past years; a 7-year old son who always believes in his father no matter what the circumstances are. Every dialogue, setting and situation felt very near and dear to my heart and thumped my heart emotionally throughout the runtime.

In addition to that, Anirudh’s background score only hoisted the movie’s emotions, and it’s the best I’ve listened to in recent years because it blended in so well with the narration. The storyline is also a breath of fresh air and is unlike any sports film I’ve ever seen before. Gowtham’s ability to tweak a standard feel-good story and make it something exemplary and intriguing must be commended along with his screenwriting potential which sails through fluently despite few minor hiccups here and there.

The remarkable performances from the lead cast also benefit the film as far as increasing the sublimeness goes. Nani especially gives a stand-out performance and one of his bests in his entire career. His attitude and the competence to express his feelings through his body language was splendid to watch and once again proves that he is one of the finest talents in the industry. Shraddha Srinath shines well in her role as a woman trying to break free from her family troubles. Her chemistry with her co-star, Nani worked decently and never felt like a distraction. On the more technical side of things, Sanu Varghese’s cinematography was also an added bonus, because the entire film felt reminiscent to the late 90s and took me through a trip down memory lane.

Overall, Jersey tells an incredible story of the finest, well-written and magnificently narrated character accompanied with an inspiring message that ‘It’s Never Too Late To Dream’. This is definitely one of the best movies of the year and will remain close to my heart moving forward. Furthermore, this movie also proves that the Telugu Film Industry is moving in a positive direction where random comedic scenes and incompatible romantic songs are not required for a film to succeed. Kudos to Gowtam Tinnanuri for embracing the change!

Rating – 4/5 | Grade – A