'Dangal' wrestles against stereotypes, pins down the details
Based on true events, "Dangal" tells the story Mahavir Singh Phogat and his daughters Geeta and Babita as they struggle against societal norms and institutional corruption to pursue a dream of becoming world-class wrestlers.
The movie opens with Mahavir (Aamir Khan) as a young man forced to quit the sport of wrestling to take on a paying job and raise a family. Having only achieved national prominence, Mahavir in dogged by this decision, largely because as a competitor he was unable to reach his goal of winning an international medal for India.
Mahavir has some hope rekindled when he finds out his wife is pregnant. He hopes for the birth of a boy, but his wife Daya (Sakshi Tanwar) delivers a girl named Geeta. Next it's Babita and then two more girls.
Knowing that girls in India don't wrestle, Mahavir is sidelines his aspirations of coaching a wrestler capable of winning an international medal. Depressed, the former wrestler is left to sulk until a fateful incident proves that girls -- specifically Geeta and Babita -- are also capable of being wrestlers. The trio immediately embarks on their journey to international success, navigating 5am workouts, restrictive dieting and a traditional Indian society less-than-welcoming of female wrestlers.
Mahavir is obsessed with his children's success and while the audience is taken through his story by the comedic narration of his brother Omkara (Aparshakti Khurrana) there is an underlying selfishness that seems to distract from Geeta and Babita's struggles. Though it seems odd to exalt the sacrifices of a man during a movie about women overcoming obstacles, the role of the male advocate proves to be essential in taking on established power structures.
In the movie's first pivotal scene Mavashir assaults a tournament director unwilling to allow his daughter to compete in a "dangal" -- a traditional Indian style wrestling tournament. Once the tournament director allows Geeta (Fatima Sana Shaikh) to compete she's able to impress onlookers. That moment catapults the trio's journey to international success through an expected, though entertaining, tale of setbacks and triumphs.
Read the whole review here.
To your questions …
John Smith at the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Q: Who is the leading candidate for Coach of the Year?
-- Mike C.
Foley: John Smith if he keeps Oklahoma State in the driver's seat for an NCAA championship. Lou Rosselli will likely be mentioned if he's able to stamp a top ten finish for Oklahoma. That's unlikely, but his recent triumph over Missouri shows that his team will be prepared for that challenge.
Maybe I'm off here, but there is also a chance Kevin Dresser and the Virginia Tech Hokies make a run at a top-four finish. That might be worthy of recognition as well.
Q: I coach high school wrestling, and have seen the 106-pound weight class turn into a forfeit fest even against some of the best teams throughout the Southeast. Even if it's not a forfeit, there isn't a lot of talented depth at the weight class like many other weight classes. Do you see any chance this weight class moves to 110 pounds in the near future? Who makes that decision?
-- Mike Ca.
Foley: Evidence is pointing to larger children and your anecdote is further substantiation for the realigning of high school weight classes. We don't need 106 pounds (once 103 pounds) as a number, we need athletes healthy and happy to compete in the sport. If there is a good reason for keeping the number at 106 I'd love to hear, but asking a 14-year-old to put on a few pounds shouldn't be that difficult and is certainly better than the alternative.
Q: What are your thoughts on the University of Great Falls adding a women's wrestling program?
-- Mike C.
Foley: BRAVO.
There is a growing need for women's college wrestling programs and any school willing to meet that need fulfill the purpose of higher education which is to provide a varied and complete educational experience to both men and women.
Q: Just for fun! You're starting a Division I program. Mark Hall, Spencer Lee, Cary Kolat, Nick Suriano, and David Taylor are in their senior seasons of high school. Rank 1-5 who you're recruiting the hardest.
-- Jared W.
Foley: I think you have to recruit every one of those athletes with a certain amount of gusto. None should fall by the wayside. However, since you asked, I will make my list.
1. Nick Suriano. He might be the best freshman we've ever seen at 125 pounds.
2. Spencer Lee. Winner like I've never seen before. His comeback in France at the Cadet World Championships was epic. I could see his legs wobbling and he just wouldn't give up. Guy lives for the deep water.
3. David Taylor. Proven winner and the type of leader that helped establish a legacy at Penn State.
4. Cary Kolat. Love me some twisty knees.
5. Mark Hall. Great performances so far.
Q: Bo Nickal has looked very impressive this season. What kind of chance do you give him to beat Gabe Dean in March?
-- Mike C.
Foley: This is the most anticipated matchup of the year. Nickal has been torturing opponents this season, often with falls and tech falls. Dean is heading into his third NCAA championships with another solid season of wrestling behind him.
Were they to wrestle today I'd probably choose Dean. The man muscles and experience are a massive unknown to Nickal, who seemed flat in his appearance in last year's NCAA finals. Dean can look to control the match from his feet and limit the danger Nickal presents most wrestlers from the clinch.
MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME
Dangal trailer
Lead character weight cutting
Q: Since Mark Hall won the Scuffle where would he rank if he wasn't redshirted? Would PSU be the favorite to win the NCAA if he was wrestling? They are very close to Oklahoma State today without him.
-- Mike Z.
Foley: If Mark Hall is in the lineup he's likely ranked fourth and Penn State is the top team in the country. That won't one-hundred percent translate to an NCAA team title, but it increases the likelihood and takes them from a slight underdog to the top team.
Q: Do you have a prediction for Iowa vs. Oklahoma State on Sunday?
-- Mike C.
Foley: Oklahoma State 19-18
Q: I believe there is an undefeated No. 1-ranked wrestler in every weight class this year so far. Is that normal?
-- Willy D.
Foley: Not by March, but it's definitely common in January prior to the Big Ten dual meet season and the Big Ten Championships where a lot of the closest matchups are competed. Not uncommon for an undefeated top seed to fall in a dual meet only to make it back in the tournament.
Overall, pretty common.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK
By Stacy B.
Loved the latest mailbag article on the problems with scrambling. I think it is a serious problem. One angle you didn't address directly was the marketing aspect of it. To grow wrestling needs to be approachable by casual fans and scrambling does not help with this. It's basically impossible to explain to someone not already deep in the sport what is going on and that's a very bad thing.
I don't have a problem with tilts scoring points but you do bring up an interesting point that maybe techniques that don't have a chance to actually pin the opponent perhaps should be worth fewer points. I'll have to think about that. I agree that it is absurd that there are no points awarded in a scramble for near falls. The whole point of wrestling should be to stay off your back.
In my opinion folkstyle rules largely reward boring conservative wrestling and the much of the risk taking that does happen is because there are perverse incentives like with scrambling or out of bounds rules. Rule changes I would like to see in folkstyle wrestling in no particular order:
1. Step out rule similar to freestyle (out of bounds should not be a safe place)
2. 3 points for a takedown (escapes are overvalued currently)
3. 4 points for a feet-to-back technique - no reaction time or control needed (there is no incentive to try throws or other high risk techniques because the risk/reward balance thoroughly discourages the attempt)
4. Get rid of riding time (just promotes riding with no intention to turn)
5. Give choice of position in 2nd and 3rd periods to the wrestler leading the match. Neutral if score is tied.
6. Award 1 point for near falls less than 2 seconds (techniques like a leg lace or 2on1 gut could actually score -- eases transition to freestyle as a bonus)
7. Put near fall criteria at 90 degrees instead of 45 (and possibly award extra points for reaching 45 degrees.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK (PART II)
By Nicholas K.
I have always been frustrated by the "riders" who don't actually do anything. I propose a clock of say 30 seconds where the top wrestler has to turn or release the bottom wrestler. If the wrestler is turned with back points awarded, the clock starts over. If the top wrestler does not turn or release in the given time period, they are given a stalling warning. You could keep the riding time point to reward aggressive wrestlers on the top but someone who just hangs on hoping for a point would actually get penalized. This would force more aggressive wrestling or get them back to their feet. It would also carry over to the feet because if someone already had been given a stall call on top they would have to be more aggressive once they get to their feet or run the risk of giving up more points. And best of all, no more 1-0 and 2-0 wins with no takedowns or turns.
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