Vijay 69 review: A heartfelt film that is too desperate to create an effect!

An inspirational emotional drama battling the issue of ageism, Vijay 69 is overtly sweet and too misguided to leave a lasting impact.

“Age is just a number” is that overused phrase we’ve all heard of and often invoke to motivate ourselves or others. But is age truly just a number, especially when it comes to a 69-year-old man with a dream of leaving a worthy legacy before he’s laid to rest? This is the question that Vijay 69 poses to put forth. As the confusing accidental funeral of himself leads Vijay Matthew (Anupam Kher) to question the meaning of his life that hasn't been closed inside a coffin yet he strives to fulfil the promise he made the love of his life who he lost at the hands of cancer: to live his life fully, rather than merely surviving. To honor this, he takes on the formidable challenge of competing in a triathlon!

In a time when there are grandmothers on Instrgram navigating the whole influencer life quite seamlessly and proving that age doesn’t define what's possible, this film feels like less of a heartfelt representation and more of a desperate attempt. Written and directed by Akshay Roy (Meri Pyaari Bindu), the film aims to be a motivational hopeful story of an underdog that is structured more to the beats of a sports biopic. It chronicles the inspiring journey of 69-year-old Vijay, who refuses to let anyone reduce him to his age, not even his own family and uphold the promise made to his wife. Adding sports into the mix seems like the perfect formula for deriving maximum stimulation. After all, what could be more uplifting than watching a man overcome physical limitations and societal hurdles to complete a race that requires him to swim for 1.5 km, cycle for 40 km, and run for 10 km? As crazily absurd as it sounds for a man of his age to accomplish this feat, it’s equally humorous, which is precisely the tone the film tries to build upon.

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However, the issue isn’t with the lighthearted treatment of a serious subject like aging. It’s the film’s lack of confidence in its approach that becomes the real hindrance for the film to come out as its wholesome self. The result is a high-octane drama where everything is dialed up for effect, causing the story to lose its organic feel. Every scene and dialogue seems to be overworked, making the humor redundant and the emotions strained. Even the film’s sporting spirit, despite the training montages and Vijay’s fiery spirit, and a love song that goes from becoming a ballad to a motivating force, fails to land effectively. 

Although the film attempts to avoid reducing anyone to their age, it paradoxically feels judgmental in its portrayal of both the young and the old. Every character—whether Vijay’s friends, his nemesis, his daughter, the media, or even himself—comes off as a caricature. This detracts from every performance, including that of Anupam Kher who seems more performative as if he is embodying a man who is, in fact, his real-life age. Every gasp seems like his strife for air, every emotional outburst a battle cry, and every joke a forced attempt at humor. This diminishes the accentric character of the angry old man with a whole lot of gallis and fire in his belly. Even Chunky Panday appears more like a Parsi version of Aakhiri Pasta than a believable character.

The loneliness that often accompanies aging is a painful reality of the mortality of human life and this realization has led many to seek a “second innings” in life. Hence the film’s framework that follows a former swimming champion finding a second chance with the support from his unlikely friendships from a cancer hospital, a young influencer and an 18-year-old nemesis—sets up the potential for a touching narrative. But the rainbow-coloured sugar-coated treatment of Vijay 69 undermines its impact and refrains from becoming a soulful rendition about how age really is just a number!

Vijay 69 is currently streaming on Netflix! 

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