Director and co-screenwriter Nitesh Tiwari does not shy away from resorting to touches of sentimentality, but he keeps a tight rein on the flow of emotions as a tenacious father and his daughters navigate a treacherous social terrain steeped in deep-rooted patriarchy, gender prejudice and rural orthodoxy.
What the audience sees in the film is that the visible weight around the male protagonist's paunchy waist is nothing compared to the massive burden of ambition and obsession that he carries in an ultra-conservative rural society.
But what Dangal does best is in not falling for the temptation to give Mahavir Phogat a halo. He isn't by any means perfect.
Driven by a personal agenda, he is guilty of robbing his daughters of their childhood and pushing them into the wrestling pit before they are old enough to decide for themselves.