Kacchey Limbu

The lack of solid conflicts is actually the major drawback of Kacchey Limbu. But considering the usualness of the story, I felt that focusing on the feel-good factor over solid conflicts helps the film achieve that relaxed nature. Shubam Yogi keeps things light, and he is not putting characters in difficult situations just for the sake of it. There is a scene where Aditi gets caught by her dad for having alcohol. Instead of going the cliche way of that being a roadblock for her, Yogi uses that incident to show the mutual care of the siblings. I also liked how he decided to keep Aditi in that figuring out space, even at the end. The edits of the movie, especially for match sequences, have a nice rhythm.

Radhika Madan gamely tries to bring energy and nerve to the part, but it never really seems the outcome of the low-stakes match will impact her future much, and the story is mostly predictable.

Though Kacchey Limbu is predictable to a fault, it is charming in its own way. The film is far more successful in the sweetly observed modest moments than in its attempted themes of woman’s self-empowerment and the privileging of boys over their sisters. Akash’s treatment of his sister doesn’t get adequate play in a movie keen on sugar-coating the damage caused by sibling rivalry and parental neglect. In a less buoyant narrative, Akash would have been a jerk. Here, he’s merely misguided. Aditi’s arc is better explored, but there are times when she’s clearly flying solo. The 106-minute movie unsurprisingly is the most alive during the tournament, for which the building secretary (Pradeep Nigam) provides breathless commentary (written by Neeraj Pandey). Like in any other cricket film, the screen is turned into a stadium as we breathlessly watch every spin of the ball, every flick of the bat.