At no point do you doubt that Singh will make it, nor does one feel awe at how he surmounts colossal physical and mental setbacks. The underdog story is perhaps too underplayed.

In choosing to show the personal side, the professional aspects get short shrift, and that's where the film doesn't score as well. Which is a pity because Dosanjh looks completely at home both off and on the field.

The mainstay of Soorma is, of course, Dosanjh in the titular role. He traverses the span of his character with sheer ease-a charmer as the shy, innocent, bumbling lover and mesmeric as the sportsman.

Soorma doesn't rouse as much as it should. It doesn't stop to feel its own heart beat. It tick-marks all the boxes and explores none. The goalposts are broadened - it drags home the same age-old clichés.