Mary Kom has been in the light for many comparisons too. Most assume it is flowing with the trend for sports based biopics and Omung is just one of the filmmakers cashing in on the trend. When Koimoi reached out to Omung, he explained how the germ of this film was there way before Bhaag Milkha Bhaag had even breathed its first air. Kumar reacted to the comparisons with, “People will talk and since there are very few films to compare with, people will compare. Since there are very few films to compare this film with, such things are bound to happen. They don’t know much about it. How much can you justify? When I had ideated this film, there was no Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. And neither did I see Chak De and felt inspired to make a sports based film. There are so many love stories bit none are copied. Every second film is a love story. But because there is a dearth of sports genre biopics. I haven’t copied a scene from a film and asked to replicate it. When a dialogue is said in a forceful manner, it reminds you of something. It’s not like I saw a scene and said that I want the same scene in my film.”
Omung Kumar
Adding to it, Omung continued with, “Mary Kom will not be compared to Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. When Bhaag Milkha Bhaag was going to be released, I was praying it does well. Now that it has done well, we are copying. If it had not done well, the verdict would be such films don’t work in India. It’s a Catch-22 situation. Ofcourse Bhaag Milkha Bhaag‘s success benefitted me. But once people watch my film, the comparisons will cease. This film has its own soul. If I compare, I am belittling my own film. It’s a story that will inspire everyone. It’s not solely a woman centric film. Everyone who has a dream, has suffered in life and is ziddi enough will relate to this film. It’s not restricted to sports alone. It stands true for all walks of life. There is boxing in this film definitely but in every boxing match has a separate ending to it. These comparisons don’t bother me.”
Mary Kom is gearing up for a release this Friday. Starring Priyanka Chopra in the role of Olympic Star Mary Kom, this is the actor’s chance to showcase her mettle.
