‘Zubaan’ is a film about dreams and aspirations and the obstacles that come in the way of a young boy (Vicky Kaushal) who loses his faith and develops a fear of music & his journey in fighting that fear and thus finding himself. The film starts off with a religious song at the gurudwara. This is followed by Dilsher (Vicky Kaushal) being bullied by some boys. When he takes resort on a construction site, he happens to meet Gurucharan Sikand (Manish Chaudhari) aka 'Lion of Gurdaspur', who happens to be a 'manager-turned-owner' of the said site.
When Dilsher asks Gurucharan as to why he did not save him from the boys, pat comes the reply from Gurucharan that the only person who can save him is he himself. Saying this, he hands over a pen as a token of remembrance. Meanwhile, the sudden death of Dilsher's father puts him in a shock, thus leading him to stammer while speaking. Years later, when Dilsher grows up, he realizes that Gurucharan has become an extremely successful person and that it is really tough to have a meeting with him. That's why Dilsher joins a security guards' agency in order to become one of the security personnel of Gurucharan. When Dilsher realizes that his opportunities are almost bleak of meeting Gurucharan, he lands up 'creating' an opportunity to meet him. And when he meets him, he shows the pen and tells him that he also hails from the same native of Gurdaspur. In no time,
Dilsher becomes extremely close to Gurucharan, so much so that he instructs Dilsher to stay with his family in their palatial house. The film revolves around his journey to get in touch with Gurucharan (Manish Chaudhari) who left a mark on him as a child and now is a successful business baron in Delhi. However, once Dilsher becomes a part of this murky world, things start falling apart. Gurucharan’s son (Raaghav Chanana) is jealous of his father’s affection and proximity to a stranger who comes from a different class. This is something that does not go well with Amira (Sarah Jane Dias), who happens to be the (one-sided) love of Surya.
After a fabulous job in Angry Indian Goddesses, Sarah Jane Dias only gets better here. A few meetings later, Sarah Jane Dias makes Dilsher realise that he stammers only when he talks and not when he sings and that he should consider singing very seriously. Meanwhile, Dilsher, who always wanted to be as great and magnificent as Gurucharan, finds his true calling and lands up in Gurdaspur… only to be arrested the moment he gets down the train. On the other hand, Dilsher also discovers a startling truth about his 'Godfather' Gurcharan, which shocks him extremely. Who are the people behind Dilsher's arrest, what is the secret that he discovers about Gurcharan?
What is the reason for him to come back to his hometown of Gurdaspur and does he find the 'real calling' of his life is what forms the rest of the film! There are problems with the film, one being the sketchy narrative. While the characters are well-drawn, their interaction with each other and how they progress towards a hurriedly written climax seems a bit abrupt. Also once the cat is out of the bag when it comes to making that plot twist, things do get a bit slow and the pace slackens. Before you think this is a family drama, the plot takes a series of unexpected twists and turns and rising above what could have been a predictable climax. Despite the weak moments and an uneven storyline, Zubaan is worth a watch. Vicky Kaushal’s performance in itself is worth the price of an admission ticket!