'Main Atal Hoon' Review: Pankaj Tripathi Excels but the Film Could’ve Done More

There is no hiding the fact that Ravi Jadhav’s Main Atal Hoon is a hagiography – the signs are all there to see, as clear as day. The film feels less like an insight into a powerful man’s life and more like a rushed History lesson, touching upon all of Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s achievements without leaving any space or time for thought. 

The film first introduces Vajpayee as a young boy who can’t give a speech in class. How he goes from that to becoming one of the most prominent Opposition leaders to eventually becoming the Prime Minister of India sounds like a fascinating story on paper. But, for the most part, that is where it remains. 

Vajpayee’s (Pankaj Tripathi) time in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) passes by in glimpses. We are told that he looks up to the likes of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya (Daya Shankar Pandey) and KB Hedgewar (Ajay Purkar) but why? What ideas influenced him? Did he disagree with any of them? There is barely any insight into the way the man thought and operated, which is a pity considering viewers are constantly reminded that he is a ‘poet and statesman’. 

But the film’s screenplay is too occupied in its politics to focus on its subject. What does Main Atal Hoon tell us that a Wikipedia entry or a cursory look on the Internet won’t? Not much. The film’s second half practically feels like an advertisement for the ruling party; most parts of the film are shot in a desaturated tone and the only ‘colour’ that often crops up are shades of saffron. 

Perhaps one of the more interesting arcs is Vajpayee’s relationship with Rajkumari (Divya Uppadhayay) and how that transforms into him finding a sense of ‘family’ several years down the line. There is an easygoing chemistry between Tripathi and Uppadhayay on screen that is enough to keep the audience engaged during their interactions with each other.

Director Jadhav, known for films like Natarang and Balgandharva, does bring his technical prowess to the film – I personally do like a desaturated tone in cinema. With cameraperson Lawrence Dcunha eye, every frame of the film comes out looking near perfect. And considering the fact that the film is basically a hagiography, the frames seem fitting for the genre – think multiple low angle shots or back shots of Vajpayee (often standing in front of a crowd). 

The background score feels like it would feel at home in Star Wars and while I can try to understand the need for such an imposing score in a film like this, the screenplay doesn’t do much to support it. The film does successfully keep the spirit of Vajpayee’s politics alive – his ideals of wanting peace between neighbouring countries for instance and even his respect for his political rivals. 

Even the dialogue writing seems mindful in trying to find a balance between being poetic and accessible to the viewer. The way his poems are placed throughout the film also doesn’t come across feeling tacky (as is the danger with adding voice overs of poetry in cinema) and complements the story well.  

Pankaj Tripathi’s performance is the best part about the film – his command over the language and his natural charisma lend itself to the character he is playing. Every time he gives a speech, especially in Parliament, you begin to understand why he was cast in the role. At the same time, his act is convincing enough to show you why Vajpayee became so popular. 

Covering the life of a person who was India’s PM for six years is a mammoth task no doubt but Main Atal Hoon could’ve been a study into why majority opinion changes – petrol prices and farmers’ plight are mentioned but that too gets lost in the film trying to cram in way too much. 

Speaking of casting, though, the casting director deserves kudos, especially for Gauri Sukhtankar who often looks uncannily like Sushma Swaraj. Even Raja Rameshkumar Sevak as LK Advani and Piyush Mishra as Vajpayee’s father Krishna Bihari Vajpayee fit their casting to a T. It’s a pity then that we rarely get to see Vajpayee’s relationship with his father later in the film considering most of the first half’s charm comes from their relationship and how Vajpayee grew under his wing. 

There is a lot in India’s history when Vajpayee was PM, including the Pokhran tests and Operation Vijay at Kargil. But, like you must’ve guessed already, we barely get to see the PM’s involvement in the tests. And keeping ghar mai ghuske maarenge jingoism aside, the insight into his political strategy at Kargil is also superficial. In a film about a statesman, these are the things you’d expect to see. 

The film’s last part goes full throttle – all of India is treated like a monolith. Phrases like ‘bharat ka sapna’ and ‘saara Bharat unke saath hai’ start populating the screen, diluting the same essence of democracy that the film was earlier talking about. 

There is mention of the way the Jana Sangh became the Bharatiya Janata Party after the dissolution of the Janata Party and naturally, the film talks about the Ram Janmabhoomi movement in UP which played a crucial role in the party’s success. The viewers are told that Vajpayee was ‘sad’ because of the way things turned out but we don’t get to see the Prime Minister’s point-of-view and neither do we find out more about ‘what’ upset him. 

At the end of the day, considering how the country’s political climate would change over the next few years, Main Atal Hoon almost reads like irony. The film’s messaging, before the ad rolls in, is pretty decent. Vajpayee is a fierce advocate for the need of an opposition in Parliament, he believes caste discrimination shouldn’t exist, and even affirms that a ruling party (i.e the government) should be questioned. 

We watch Vajpayee be praised for his fearless writing in the journal ‘Rashtra Dharma’ and be appreciated for his anti-establishment writing. By the time you watch him sit down for protests and continue to speak about how the vipaksh is an integral part of a democracy, news headlines from the past few months mock you. 

If this irony isn’t lost on people, perhaps it could do some good.