Jaadugar, which has been released directly on Netflix, is a lovely entertainer that tells the story of an aspiring magician in a small-town who’s compelled to play in a local football tournament. The writers deserve praise as they neatly weave magic and football into the narrative. Moreover, unlike in other sports films, here the characters are trying to fight a small-level football league. But the makers have succeeded in explaining the importance of it and why winning matters a lot to the protagonist and his team. The love story that brews between the lead protagonists is cute. The supporting characters are well fleshed out. Unlike other sports films, here the characters are middle-aged and are not full-time players and that gives a nice touch. However, one can’t help but draw parallels with films like Chhichhore, Chhalaang and Jhund, which were also stories of underdogs in a sports setup. A few developments are difficult to digest. The film is too long (2 hours and 47 minutes) though thankfully, it’s not boring at any point. Jitendra Kumar, as always, is in top form. He looks a bit off while performing the romantic song, but overall, it’s a fine performance. Arushi Sharma does much better, compared to Love Aaj Kal, and gives a memorable performance. Jaaved Jaaferi is too good while Manoj Joshi adds a lot to the film with his performance. Out of the players, Shayank Shukla (Hemu; goalkeeper), Raksha Pannwar (Dipa), Shoan Zagade (Riju George), Ajay Mehra (Ikrar) and Raj Qushal (Lalli) leave the maximum mark. Rajiv Nema Indori (Commentator Nima) and Sameer Saxena (Commentator Doshi) raise laughs with their one-liners. Purnendu Bhattacharya (Avinash ji) and Rukshar Dhillon (Iccha) are okay in cameos. All in all, Jaadugar is a feel-good clean film. Worth watching!

My rating - *** ½ out of 5!