Chak De India is a true sporty and patriotic film, well-timed in its released around India’s 60th Independence Day. It has a beautiful inspiring song which shows that what you need is resolve and not strength to win. This film emphasizes the rule of life that team spirit is the catalyst to performance, whether in sports or in any organization.Much along the lines of another inspiring sports film, 'Bend It like Beckham', this movie reminds me of what sheer motivation can do to the morale and the performance of a team.
We see that initially the team is divided on the lines of region, class and ethnicity and lack of encouragement. Kabir Khan, played by Shah Rukh, inculcates in them a sense of team spirit and asks them to put the country first. The group comes together and wins the World Cup, under the able direction and leadership of Kabir Khan, who has the resilience to win back his lost glory after a humiliating defeat against Pakistan a few years ago, for which he is blamed as he misses a penalty corner.
Be it the Korean team with their dubious tactics of “Woman to Woman marking” or the Argentinean team with their ruthless power play, or the champion Australian team or the overconfident England team who grossly underestimate you: show them all! Carry the torch forward, relent not under pressure. Pass on the ball, play as a team because we can reach the goal together. Teamwork plays the vital role in India's victory as the two centre forwards finally forget their rivalry and pass on the ball to the GOAL.
As Andrew Carnegie says, "Teamwork is the ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results."
This is the power of self-confidence. Have you the guts to do it? And to show that you can triumph against all odds? Can you prove this to everyone who did not believe in you? Can you slap your critics right back in their faces?
Sports and life is all about victory of the human spirit over challenges. Not only team spirit, it is also a test of human temperament and endurance.
Another beautiful thing in this movie and which is so true in our own lives is the labeling each one of us experiences: “Oh, you can't play because you are a woman”. “Oh, he is a traitor because he is from a different community.” This film drives home the point that we are ONE. When we represent our country abroad, we are one proud nation, head held high, to compete as a team. As Kabir Khan says, “Play only for India, and then for your teammates, and if you have any energy left, play for yourselves.”When I look around, I find my own process, ePurple Media so much like the Chak De Indian hockey team. Our success depends so much on the combined effort of every individual. The BD (Business Developers) brings us business, and pass the ball to the SEO (Search Engine Optimizers) and they pass on the mantle to us: the “content writing team” and we play out the ball to score a goal: I mean a link to get the applause of the Google traffic. And this is how we click.
Also, it is important to remember that victory does not come in one go. One has to persevere with patience and diligence and practice, as we see in this movie. The Indian hockey team women are put under a rigorous exercise regime. As Kabir Khan says, “To win the World Cup, you need resolve, not physical strength.” Talents take time to be refined. But what matters is to realise that the potentials are always there in you, although latent– because you have not taken the time to work upon them. Give it time, and you shall shine.
And as Henry Ford, the great American industrialist says, "Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success."
And what inspires me to see this film and apply its one important message in life is one:
BELIEVE IN YOURSELF.