Chhalaang movie review: Hansal Mehta, Rajkummar Rao and Nushrratt Bharuccha get full marks for this one

Murtuza Iqbal

Hansal Mehta’s Chhalaang starring Rajkummar Rao and Nushrratt Bharuccha has started streaming on Amazon Prime Video. This movie is Mehta and Rao’s fifth collaboration. They have earlier worked together in films like Shahid, Citylights, Aligarh, and Omerta.

Mehta is known for making films in a dark zone. So, when the trailer of Chhalaang was released we were a bit skeptical whether it will be a good film or not as the filmmaker was trying something out of his zone. But well, thankfully, our doubts get cleared after watching Chhalaang.

The movie is about Montu (Rao) who is working as a PT teacher in a school in Haryana. But PT as a subject is not taken seriously in the school as well as Montu sir is also not keen on teaching students physical education. One day, the school hires another PT teacher, Singh sir (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) and Montu has to assist him. Well, an ego clash takes place between the two and Montu requests the school principal to have a competition between his team and Singh sir’s team. So, who will win the competition, Montu sir or Singh sir? Watch the film to know that…

Well, in a scene, veteran actor Satish Kaushik says, ‘Half time ke baad dekhna ab game asal mein hoga’, and well this dialogue sums up the whole movie. The first half of Chhalanng is quite dull; characters are being introduced and the love angle is given more importance in the first half. However, the film takes a huge chhalaang (jump) in the second half.

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta and writers Luv Ranjan, Aseem Arrora and Zeishan Quadri, save the best for the second half. The movie keeps us engaged throughout the second half of the film and the last 45 minutes of the movie are mind-blowing. We know that what’s going to happen in the climax, but the way it has narrated by Mehta it gives us an adrenaline rush.

Talking about actors, Rajkummar Rao has given a wonderful performance and once again proves his versatility. Nushrratt Bharuccha is a surprise here. This character was something new for her and she shines throughout the film, and gives a confident performance. Also, Rajkummar and Nushrratt, both the actors have got the accent perfect.

Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub is fantastic in his role and supports well. Veteran actors Satish Kaushik, Saurabh Shukla, and Ila Arun are perfect in their respective roles. Baljinder Kaur, who plays the role of Montu's mother in the film, deserves a special mention. She has given a hilarious performance. All the kids in the movie are also damn good.

The music of the film is nice, and the title track stands out. Also, the background score is just perfect.

Overall, Chhalaang is an entertaining film. Hansal Mehta has tried to do something new here, and he gets full marks for it.

Ratings: 3.5/5

Watch the trailer here…