Summary of Dangal by Swecha Agarwal

 In the movie Dangal, a man from India, Mahavir Phogat, wishes to fulfill his dream of earning a gold medal for India in wrestling, but gave up on his dream because India offered no support or gratitude for their wrestlers, only fame and medals. He eventually had to quit because he had no money. In his new life as a businessman with a wife, he decides that he will live his dream through his son when he gets one. Unfortunately, after many vain attempts, he is not able to acquire a son and believes that it is the end of his career in wrestling. However, when his two eldest girls, Geeta and Babita, show promise when beating up 2 boys for taunting them, he realizes that he doesn’t need a son to continue wrestling. The two girls are then subjected to extreme training sessions and consequences, which they hate. They draw the line when their father makes them cut their hair like a boy’s. Their friend opens their eyes by telling them what a normal girl’s life really is-to learn household chores and make food, and when she turns 14, marry her off to raise children. It inspires the girls to embrace this opportunity to prove themselves, and they start becoming champions by beating boys and bringing home trophies and medals. The time comes when Geeta has to go train with another coach for the internationals instead of her father coaching her like he did all these years. Geeta lets loose more and more and starts to embrace her girly side, which interferes with her wrestling skills. She loses many times and India loses faith in her. Geeta realizes that she needs her father, and through a turmoil of events and mini episodes, she is able to get coaching from her father, who directs her on the right path after her original coach led her astray. The original coach tries many times to ensure that Geeta listens to only him, even though he can clearly see that Geeta is playing extremely well with her father’s advice. In spite of his extreme attempts, like locking him in a room at the far end of the building, Geeta wins based on her father’s advice from before. She becomes the first Indian ever to win a gold medal in the internationals, and Mr. Phogat’s dream comes true. The movie is told from the nephew’s point of view, who accompanies the girls on their journey to success, giving an innocent perspective of the story. Dangal has two prominent morals- that you can only be the best at something by sticking to that routine, and if you don’t, you will be farther away from that goal than you ever imagined, and that no matter if you are a boy or girl, the same element needs to be there for both to achieve a goal-hard work and effort.