Is ‘Dangal’ the best film of the decade?

Aamir Khan’s Dangal is the next big ‘event’ film of the year and like he always does, the superstar has been showing the film to his friends in the industry.

Aamir showed the film to Shabana Azmi on her birthday last month, she called it Aamir’s most heartfelt performance.

“Aamir Khan does it again. Dangal is fantastic.Director Nitesh Tiwari d excellent writing d brilliant cast Aamirs most hearfelt performance.. Watching #Dangal is d best birthday gift I could get. Thanku @aamir_khan nitesh tiwari kiran rao fatima sana u r outstanding”

Shabana’s husband and award-winning writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar also heaped praises on the film, going as far as to call it the best film in the last 15 years!

“Dangal is by any standard the best film our film industry has made in the last decade and a half . Hats off to the cast n crew ”

Filmmaker Karan Johar too called ‘Dangal’ the best film in a decade.

“Just saw DANGAL…haven’t seen a better film in a decade……speechless!!!!” he tweeted.

The overwhelmingly positive response to the screening did not stop there as National Award winning director Vinay Shukla shared his short review of the film on Facebook.

He called it the “first classic of mainstream Hindi cinema in the present century”

“Two nights ago, I saw DANGAL (sound, CG works are still to be completed). I can say it for myself that I’d count it as the first classic of mainstream Hindi cinema in the present century. Every department excels: writing, performances, directorial treatment etc. It’s so Indian in its ethos! I can only think of Aamir Khan among the present stars who has consciously tried to raise the bar of Hindi cinema in the popular genre. Respect. ” he posted on Facebook.

Normally, reviews from celebrities cannot be trusted, but most of them are posted just a couple of days prior to the release of the film. In Dangal’s case, the opinions posted seem to be more genuine as it comes more than 2 months before the theatrical release of the film.

Aamir is also extremely smart when it comes to marketing his films. He wouldn’t want to hype it up and raise audience expectations, if the film hadn’t truly exceeded his own expectations.

Could Dangal be the best film of the last decade and a half? Will Aamir deliver yet another classic after nearly 2 years of hard work and extreme levels of dedication?

If it is indeed a great film, what could be its box office potential? While it may not be as entertaining as ‘3 Idiots’, Aamir has also said the film is entertaining and humorous.