Vicky Kaushal steps in as Major Dhyan Chand after Shah Rukh Khan rejected the biopic.(Photo Credit –Instagram)
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Bollywood in the last decade planned a lot of biopics and most of them didn’t see the light of the day. One such biopic was Legendary Hockey Player Dhyan Chand’s biopic which Ronnie Screwvala was producing. But now the biopic is back on track after the producer recently announced it. And now, sources claim that Vicky Kaushal is all set to play Dhyan Chand on screen.
Earlier there were reports that the team is keen on Ishan Khatter playing the hockey star. But, Vicky was very keen to be a part of this sports biopic and he conveyed the same. Director Abhishek Chaubey immediately proceeded with this choice.
Vicky Kaushal has already played Sardar Udham in his biopic and will be seen as Sam Manek Shaw in his biopic Sam Bahadur. Dhyan Chand will be Vicky’s third biopic. Talking about collaborating with Ronnie Screwvala, Dhyan Chand will be their fourth outing post Love Per Square Foot, Uri: The Surgical Strike and Sam Bahadur.
A source close to Pinkvilla exclusively confirmed this update. “Vicky was extremely impressed when he heard the story and is excited about the project. While the conversation between him and the makers has been going on for some time, now it has moved to the advanced stage. Both the actor and the makers are keen to collaborate on this project, but they will take a final call on the shooting schedule and other formalities post Sam Bahadur, said the source.
Interestingly, Dhyan Chand’s biopic has been linked with a lot of A-listers, all of them rejecting the script. The film was first offered to Shah Rukh Khan. But he was not interested in the film since he already played a hockey coach in Chak De India. The film was then passed on to Ranbir Kapoor. Ranbir was not interested in any sports film other than football. He also passed on the idea. Rumours were rife that Varun Dhawan will finally play the lead in Dhyan Chand Biopic but that also did not materialise and the Bhediya actor chose Arun Khetarpal biopic over Dhyan Chand. However, VD even walked out of that biopic as well. Finally, the film has reached Vicky Kaushal.
Dhyan Chand’s biopic has been in the making since last decade when his son Ashok Dhyan Chand sold the movie rights to producers Pooja Shetty and Arti Shetty. Pooja and Arti took the idea to close friend Karan Johar who passed it to Ronnie. Recently RSVP films announced, “1500+ goals, 3 Olympic gold medals, and a story of India’s pride. It gives us immense pleasure to announce our next with #AbhishekChaubey – a biopic on the Hockey Wizard of India – #DHYANCHAND.”
Now, with Vicky Kaushal on board, all seems in place and Sonchiriya director Abhishek Chaubey has pulled the next gear for his film. Vicky Kaushal and Ronnie Screwvala were earlier collaborating on The Immortal Ashwatthama which as of now stands cancelled owing to its inflated budget of around 200 crores plus. So it’s time to see the Masaan actor on the sports ground instead.
Apart from Dhyan Chand biopic, Vicky has Laxman Utekar’s next with Sara Ali Khan, Anand Tiwari’s next opposite Tripti Dimri produced by Dharma Productions, Yash Raj Films’ The Great Indian Family opposite Maanushi Chhillar and Meghna Gulzar’s Sam Bahadur.
