After making a directional debut with Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, R Madhavan’s biopic film which is based on the life of Indian aerospace scientist S Nambi Narayanan received an overall positive response. However, there is one review from a noted film critic that caught R Madhavan’s attention.
Anupama Chopra’s review
Recently, movie critic Anupama Chopra reviewed R Madhavan’s newly released movie Rocketry: The Nambi Effect. She pointed out the problem with the subject’s Hindu religion and its patriotism. Writing a review of the movie based on the life of Padma Bhushan Nambi Narayanan, Chopra expressed that the movie constantly highlighted Nambi’s patriotism and also leaned towards his religion.
“It’s admirable that the film has brought Narayanan’s many accomplishments into the spotlight, but the screenplay repeatedly underlines his patriotism and also leans pointedly into his religion”, she said in the review that was published in July 1.
FC Review: "#Madhavan's #RocketryTheNambiEffect comes into its own when it's stripped off its largeness to give us a tragic story about India and its bone-crunching system", writes @Vishal1Menon. @fcompanionsouth https://t.co/sWayrDIJ1U
— Film Companion (@FilmCompanion) July 2, 2022
She further points out that the movie written, directed, and played by actor R Madhavan showed the ISRO scientist as a ‘true-blue Hindu patriot’. “Our first visual of Narayanan is in the puja room at his home. At crucial moments, he prays. Narayanan is a true-blue Hindu patriot”, Chopra wrote. She also highlighted that Narayanan was so patriotic that he had refused a fat-paying job offered by NASA.
The counter-attack
Reacting to her reviews, filmmaker Ashoke Pandit slammed her on Twitter and wrote, “@anupamachopra This is being #Hinduphobic Why does it trouble U if Narayanan is a Hindu patriot and prays during crucial times? Every maker doesn’t justify trrsm d way #VinodChopra dd in Shikara . @ActorMadhavan hs done a brilliant job and hv d guts to praise it.”
..@anupamachopra
This is being #Hinduphobic
Why does it trouble U if Narayanan is a Hindu patriot and prays during crucial times?
Every maker doesn’t justify trrsm d way #VinodChopra dd in Shikara . @ActorMadhavan hs done a brilliant job and hv d guts to praise it. pic.twitter.com/TQ5ZtL3ASP— Ashoke Pandit (@ashokepandit) July 2, 2022
Madhavan too slammed her views and commented that he is fine if she didn’t like the film but to give it a religious spin is not okay.
He replied, “We thought it was in terrible taste too.. this is who Nambi sir is .. I am totally okay if you did not like or hated the film and I will take it in the chin..but why this ??Come on -we are way Better than this.Regretful”.
For context to Ashoke Pandit’s tweet, Anupama Chopra is the wife of filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra who was recently slammed for his 2020 directorial Shikara which was made on the exodus of Kashmiri pandits in 1990.
Reacting to the tweets by Madhavan & Ashoke Pandit, one user wrote, “Nobody considers @anupamachopra as a critic she is irrelevant to us doesn’t matter what what review she gives , we don’t even watch her reviews nobody gives a damn , shikara would have been rated 5star by but did it work , neyt,ignore her she is not gonna change”.
Nobody considers @anupamachopra as a critic she is irrelevant to us doesn’t matter what what review she gives , we don’t even watch her reviews nobody gives a damn , shikara would have been rated 5star by but did it work , neyt,ignore her she is not gonna change
— Roshan Choudhary (@RoshanCchdry) July 2, 2022
R Madhavan’s ‘Rocketry: The Nambi Effect’ is the actor’s maiden directorial venture released on July 1. The movie is based on the life of former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan, who was falsely charged with spying in 1994. Later, Nambi Narayanan was awarded Padma Bhushan in 2019 on the occasion of the 70th Republic Day. Also, the Kerala government approved providing compensation of Rs 1.3 crore for his wrongful arrest and harassment by the Kerala Police in the 1994 spying case.
