Dangal is the best feast on this Christmas and one can’t deny that the film is the best one of 2016. The film is recommended not only to Aamir Khan’s fans but also to the family audience who were awaiting a family drama that is high on emotions.

When it comes to wrestling, or education, or religion, Aamir Khan knows best. After watching “Dangal”, it is difficult to argue with that.

Dangal may be confusingly cautious around popular notions on the parental front, but in the matter of sporting achievement it does not mince words: silver is second best, it tells us unequivocally, and there is nothing wrong in aiming for gold. In an India that remains doubtful about the virtues of ambition, in a world that continues to consider ambition a dirty word for women in particular, such clarity is remarkable and inspiring.

Dangal is not just a movie; it is an experience to be cherished. It is extremely engaging, brilliantly entertaining and phenomenally patrio­tic in its feel. It is as much a film for the young as for the old, as much for the classes as for the masses, as much for the city audience as for the viewers in small towns and villages, as much for the rich as for the poor, as much for the multiplex audience as for the single-screen cinema audience, as much for the men as for the women. It has special appeal for the ladies and it has terrific repeat value. To say that it will prove to be a blockbuster is to state the obvious. The film is destined to be one of the biggest blockbusters of Indian cinema. In fact, it can turn out to be THE BIGGEST BLOCKBUSTER EVER!

Rarely does a Hindi film come along that is pleasing on every front – from performances to script to music. And contrary to what people may think, this is not a lecture on women empowerment. It is a film that is entertaining as it is enlightening, and definitely one the whole family can and should watch.

Most Bollywood sports films slow down the action, cut it up, use close-ups to hide the actor as much as possible. Dangal, however, observes large portions of its bouts at a distance, enough for the viewer to realise that they aren’t faking the entire thing. The choreography is tremendous (cinematography by Sethu Sriram), arms hitting bodies and bodies hitting mats with satisfying thwacks and thuds.

Every age produces the cinema it deserves, and with its insistence on absolute obedience to an authoritarian figure, Dangal is inadvertently a reflection of our times. Daddy truly does know best, and Dangal harbours no doubt whatsoever that his daughters are wise not to question him.