Divya, a former India football captain whose playing career ended in a knee injury, now serves as a police officer and takes on the job of building a team from boys living in Gujarat's juvenile homes. She trains them for a state-level tournament while fighting corruption, sexism and the label of being written off as criminals. Billed as the first Gujarati sports drama, the film follows her push to prove that football can rewrite these boys' lives.
Gujarat 11 arrived as the Gujarati industry's first sports drama, and it wears that ambition on its sleeve. Divya, a former India captain turned police officer, assembles a squad from boys in the state's juvenile homes and drills them for a tournament that is meant to hand them a second chance. Daisy Shah, in her Gujarati debut, carries the film, and both the Times of India and the soccer specialist SoccerMovieMom agree she is the steadiest reason to watch.
The problem is everything the film piles around her. It reaches for the independent-woman arc, the childhood friend who quietly funds the team, juvenile-home abuse, caste and disability, corruption, and two full Bollywood-style dance numbers, all inside two hours and twenty minutes. The Times of India, rating it three out of five, praised the direction, performances and Roopkumar Rathod's music but flagged a strong sense of deja vu, since the underdog-redemption beats land exactly where you expect. SoccerMovieMom, scoring it six out of ten, was blunter about the football itself: recreational and contrived, with a final shootout that drags rather than thrills.
What holds up is the intent. Director Jayant Gilatar tries to widen the standard redemption template into something with a social pulse, and the juvenile-home backdrop gives the film a subject Gujarati cinema had not touched. What lets it down is discipline, both in the length and in the number of ideas competing for room. As a first swing at the sports genre in Gujarati it is a creditable, watchable one, more notable for what it attempts than for how cleanly it lands.
Verdict
A landmark as Gujarati cinema's first sports drama, watchable mainly for Daisy Shah, though it crowds in too many themes and a predictable underdog arc.
What works
- Daisy Shah anchors it in a strong Gujarati debut
- First sports drama in Gujarati cinema, a genuine first
- Roopkumar Rathod's music and songs land well
- A social subject built around juvenile-home boys
What holds it back
- Overloaded with too many competing themes
- Underdog beats feel predictable and familiar
- Football sequences are contrived and low-stakes
- At 2h 20m it runs long and drags near the end
Cast & crew
Writers: Shilpa Ganji, Jayant Gilatar, Vyas Hemang
Music: Roopkumar Rathod
Cast: Daisy Shah (Divya Chauhan), Pratik Gandhi (Nirmal Mehta), Kavin Dave (Ranjeet Panchal), Chetan Daiya, Pradip Harsora (Chiman)
Watch the trailer
Play the official trailer on YouTubeMore from Jayant Gilatar
More Drama Gujarati films
Frequently asked
Is Gujarat 11 worth watching?
A landmark as Gujarati cinema's first sports drama, watchable mainly for Daisy Shah, though it crowds in too many themes and a predictable underdog arc. Kevu Che rates it 3 out of 5.
What is Gujarat 11 about?
Divya, a former India football captain whose playing career ended in a knee injury, now serves as a police officer and takes on the job of building a team from boys living in Gujarat's juvenile homes. She trains them for a state-level tournament while fighting corruption, sexism and the label of being written off as criminals. Billed as the first Gujarati sports drama, the film follows her push to prove that football can rewrite these boys' lives.
What is the IMDb rating of Gujarat 11?
Gujarat 11 (2019) holds an IMDb rating of 6.1 out of 10.