Pippa

"Pippa," stands out as a refreshingly understated entry in a genre typically known for its boisterous patriotism, especially within Bollywood. The film, anchored on the life story of Balram Singh Mehta, delves into the crucial role of the amphibious battle tank-aptly named 'Pippa' (a Punjabi word for a tin can that floats)-in the pivotal battles of 1971. Unlike many of its counterparts, "Pippa" eschews the usual jingoism, opting instead for a more nuanced approach to storytelling.

The narrative, admittedly slow to ignite, eventually finds its footing, drawing the audience into the thick of the action. Ishaan Khatter, portraying the main protagonist Balram Singh Mehta, delivers a remarkably measured performance, striking a balance between intensity and restraint. His portrayal underscores the character's evolution through the tribulations of war, a journey of maturation and transformation that is both compelling and convincing.

Supporting performances add depth to the narrative, with Mrunal Thakur and Soni Razdan offering strong turns as Mehta's sister and mother, respectively. Priyanshu Painyuli, initially rigid in his role as Balram's strict brother Ram, eventually finds his groove, contributing to the film's emotional depth.

Visually, "Pippa" impresses with some stunning tank sequences, showcasing a commendable level of technical prowess. The film's real auditory triumph, however, lies in its music and background score by the legendary A. R. Rahman, whose compositions elevate the film's mood and energy, keeping the "josh" (spirit) high.

A notable surprise is the performance of Kamal Sadanah, who steps into the shoes of the legendary Sam Manekshaw with a finesse that belies his time away from the spotlight. His portrayal adds a layer of authenticity and gravitas to the film.

However, "Pippa" is not without its imperfections. The script shows signs of looseness, particularly in the initial segments, and the VFX, crucial for a war movie, occasionally falls short of expectations, detracting from the film's overall impact.

In conclusion, while "Pippa" may have benefited from a grander release on the big screen, it remains a worthy watch. It tells a story that needed to be told, doing so with a subtlety and sensitivity that sets it apart from typical Bollywood war dramas. Its few flaws aside, "Pippa" is a commendable effort that contributes meaningfully to the Indian war film genre.

Pippa is an action drama historical war directed by raj menon.

The performances are good. Ishaan khattar, priyanshu painyuli, mrunal thakur are the three main leads and all three of them are diligent in their work. The rest of the cast is good.

One of the strongest qualities of the film is its cinematography and action sequences. The action sequences are very well choreographed and shot. They give a sense of high technical understanding of such scenes. The cinematography comprises many different landscapes. The camerawoman priya seth captures the war-torn lands of bangladesh in a very raw sense.

The screenplay is very engaging and tautly written. The events are very charismatic but not the characters. The characters are not well established to make us feel empathy. The film has a serious buildup problem. The buildup to the actuon scenes are not proper and hence you will feel distracted between the long drawn sequences. The music and sound design is pretty average, not something you resonate with AR rahman. 'Kara oi louho kopat' has been experimented very casually, very needless. I also don't like how the film tries to show bangladeshis as victims only and not fierce individuals and revolutionaries.

The movie is americanised. The dialogues, accent, the lingo used by military personnel is all americanised. I am actually thinking, what american shows were they watching to learn such things or is these some American Training on how to hollywood style, also with guitar and drums playing in the background.

And then we have bollywood masala or songs and dance numbers.

If you are building a war movie, then build a war movie... why put all this bollywood magic masala and old formula. I was just waiting for some item number to pop up.

Instead, they could have dove deeper into the politics of it, the history of East Pakistan, Bangladesh, Mukti Bahini.

An immersive war film experience without the unnecessary chauvinistic nationalistic pomp and show-I enjoyed the film thoroughly. And yes! I wasn't really aware of the details of the war of '71, precisely the Battle of Garibpur, and how India helped East Pakistan (Bangladesh) attain liberation from West Pakistan.

The story of three siblings is straightforward and neat. The rift between the brothers was interesting. I am glad the makers didn't burden our protagonist with a love interest. The war scenes-WOW-beautifully designed. The locations where the film is shot contributed immensely. I believe not much of VFX has gone into the film. The tank battles could have been dealt with better. Underproduction? Small budget ? Maybe the reason, but whenever PIPPA was in the water, I was watching without a blink. Ishan worked for me as an actor mostly. Imaamulhaq was brilliant.

The visuals are for the theatre, and cinematographer Priya Seth did an excellent job, especially during the war sequences; the camera immersed me. Director Raja Krishna Menon did commendably as well-the setup, the war sequences were well done. I had teary eyes more than once.

On the flip side, the pacing gets slow towards the end. The climax is underwhelming indeed. Edits at some places were abrupt; also, the makers could have shortened the film. The background score was changing tones, so it worked for me only in parts. AR Rahman sir didn't impress. I wish the film had seen the theaters. Pippa Pippa, "Ghee da dibba," is a victory indeed.

I think budget of the movie is limited to production of movie are very average.in writing movie lack the depth.u will feel that story is in hurry and leader role should be goven to priyanshu Painyuli rather than overacting ki dukaan Ishan khattar.whenever Priyanshu aka Ram Mehta come at screen he will let u feel that serious war movie is going on but when Ishaan khattar use to come on screen he literally destroyed the whole movie by his overacting. Mrinal thakur is okish in yhis movie bcz she don't have much to do, but whenever Ram Mehta and Soni Razdan come to screen then u will feel the movie n top notch acting.i think this movie is written in hurry without deep work,with less production cost at many places u willfeel like some kindy of fauji serial is running of the screen. They can do far far better than this.so i will give it 5 /10 ⭐