I Am Kalam Movie Reviews


Avg. Critics Rating
3.5
Verdict: Super Hit based on 11 reviews
Avg. User Rating
3.4
Verdict: Cool based on 22 reviews & ratings
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  • Pankaj Sabnani

    4.0

    Pankaj Sabnani | Glamsham

    Remember Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam? I'm sure you do. The former President of India, with his charming personality and an inimitable kind demeanour, was and still is a source of inspiration to millions. I AM KALAM is a tale enthused by the maverick leader. The film traces the life of Chottu (Harsh Mayar), a poor kid with a million dollar smile. He is very sharp and interested in studies, but his mother can't afford to send him to school
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  • Gaurav Malani

    4.0

    Gaurav Malani | Indiatimes

    I Am Kalam is a film about an underprivileged child who is inspired by India's erstwhile President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and aspires to grow up to be a respectable person like him. While the basic tendency for a film like this would be to show the triumph of the kid's aspirations by the hands of the President himself with a cameo in the climax, I Am Kalam refrains from any such larger-than-life portrayal and remains rooted. However despite having a realistic approach
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  • Saibal Chatterjee

    4.0

    Saibal Chatterjee | NDTV Movies

    His toothy, high-wattage grin is an outright winner. It lights up the desultory desert landscape. But there is infinitely more to I Am Kalam than child actor Harsh Mayar’s heart-warming screen presence. Indeed, he is just one of the many treasures on offer in Nila Madhab Panda’s directorial debut. I Am Kalam is a sure-footed cinematic essay that delivers its essential social message without working up the sort of gratuitous preachy froth that films of this genre
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  • Rajeev Masand

    3.5

    Rajeev Masand | ibnlive.com

    Inspirational and humorous in equal measure, 'I am Kalam' is the heartwarming story of a poor boy who aspires to learn; a young dreamer determined to rise above his humble roots and carve his own destiny. Directed sensitively by debutant Nila Madhab Panda, the film avoids melodrama while delivering an important message about children and the importance of education. Harsh Mayar is Chhotu, an uneducated but bright young village kid
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  • Taran Adarsh

    3.5

    Taran Adarsh | bollywoodhungama.com

    Call it a coincidence, I AM KALAM is the third film this year that depicts the plight of an underprivileged kid. STANLEY KA DABBA and CHILLAR PARTY wowed viewers of all ages. Now I AM KALAM, directed by Nila Madhab Panda, makes a heartfelt and earnest effort to tell the story of a deprived kid and also, how the fortunate and blessed can play a crucial role in the upliftment of the marginalized kids across the globe. I AM KALAM is engaging
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  • Nikhat Kazmi

    3.5

    Nikhat Kazmi | Times of India

    It's inspirational, intelligent, topical and entertaining too. More importantly, it brims over with heart and soul, leaving no one untouched with its simple message of providing an equal opportunity -- specially the right to education -- to every child in the world. Yes, I Am Kalam finally articulates a near-perfect children's film, with an equal appeal for adults too. The film acquires special appeal because of the tone it follows.
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  • Shaikh Ayaz

    3.5

    Shaikh Ayaz | rediff.com

    Devoid of absolutely any known name in its cast, save for Gulshan Grover [ Images ], I Am Kalam is a welcome addition to the children's film genre which has often received short shrift from mainstream Bollywood. Playing out like a documentary with scant recourses at its disposal, as if screaming to alienate itself from the commerce that defines today's cinema, I Am Kalam is a film with straight-from-the-heart directness, with a boy as protagonist
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  • Karan Anshuman

    3.5

    Karan Anshuman | Mumbai Mirror

    When the two boys - no older than eight - talk for the first time, one asks the other "are you any good at English?" The retort comes without missing a beat, "do you know how to climb a tree?" Thus commences an unlikely companionship between a friendless prince Ranvijay Singh, son of the local Maharana and a ragamuffin who works at the nearby roadside dhaba and goes by the name 'Kalam', a moniker he gives himself after being inspired
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  • Shubhra Gupta

    3.5

    Shubhra Gupta | Indian Express

    All little boys who serve you tea at road side dhabas are called Chotu. This is an immutable law of nature. All except one, who has arrived on a screen near you. His name is Kalam. And he is a winner. This is turning out to be the year when Bollywood has suddenly decided to throw a spotlight on child labour, starting with 'Stanley Ka Dabba', and 'Chillar Party'. Kalam aka Chotu (Mayar) is the little boy-in-rags whom you don’t even look at
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  • Mayank Shekhar

    3.0

    Mayank Shekhar | Hindustan Times

    A little Rajput royal 'Kunwar saa, Rannvijay Singh' speaks to everyone, including his commoner friend, in the honorofic, respectful, 'aap': "Aap kaise hain (How are you?)," "Aap kahan jaa rahein hai (Where're you going)" etc. "Aap aap kyon (bolta hai), lagta hai kisi aur se baat kar raha hai (What's up with these aaps, seems like you're talking to someone else)," the poor kid, an unlikely buddy, asks this prince, to loosen up a bit, get more real
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  • Khalid Mohamed

    3.0

    Khalid Mohamed | The Asian Age

    It’s a sand band baaja of sorts. Out there in the Rajasthan desertscape, an adolescent kid, tourists and itinerant minstrels kick off an impromptu music concert. The beat’s magic, the snappy kid’s deliriously happy. It’s short-lived. On being treated unjustly, the same kid breaks into a solo concert to release his pent-up anger. And there’s no one to watch him but an ailing camel silhouetted against a slate-grey moonlight. That tiny tandav
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  • Mrigank Dhaniwala

    NR

    Mrigank Dhaniwala | Koimoi

    I Am Kalam review Biz rating: 1/5 star. What’s Good: Master Harsh Mayar’s natural performance; the well-intent...
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  • thomas.richard

    4.0

    A small gem - 'I Am Kalam' movie review

    thomas.richard, 9 years ago
    Super hit movie. I loved everything about this movie.

I Am Kalam Keywords


I, Am, Kalam, Drama, Children, Bollywood, 2011, I Am Kalam movie reviews

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