Kabir Khan’s Chandu Champion is set to release on June 14. In an exclusive interview with IndiaToday.in, the filmmaker spoke about the film and why he chose Kartik Aaryan for the pivotal role. The sports biopic is based on Paralympic gold medallist Murlikant Petkar. Calling it a “fascinating story of an underdog”, Kabir believes it would be a “crime” not to celebrate the sports icon.

Excerpts from the conversation:

Murlikant Petkar, India’s first Paralympic gold medalist, is a true national hero. What inspired you to bring his story to the big screen?

Sometimes we don’t choose stories, stories choose us. It’s a very amazing story. And I feel very lucky that it came to me because it’s one of the most compelling underdog stories you’ve ever heard. We sometimes compartmentalize our stories – it’s a sports story, it’s a drama story. In fact, it’s an amazing story of a man who refused to give up and when you read it, you feel so inspired and motivated. I felt this story should be told to this country because this is a hero we have completely forgotten. And when you watch the film, you realise what this man achieved and how he achieved it – it would be a crime if you didn’t celebrate him.

So, did you meet him in person for the film?

Luckily, I was able to meet Mr. Murlikant Petkar. I spent some time with him and understood the whole story, because as I said, he is a forgotten hero. Also, there is not much documentation about what he did, when he achieved all this. So, I had to spend a lot of time with him and his family to understand the whole story from him. And then, of course, did extensive research with the concerned parties to understand the story.

Kartik Aaryan is known for playing light-hearted characters. How did you feel he was right for this role?

If you look at my entire career, I have never gone by the image of a particular actor. If that was the case, Salman (Khan) would not have been cast for ‘Bajrangi (Bhaijaan)’. John and Katrina would not have been in ‘New York’. For me, I only see the raw material in the person who is the actor. And, in this case, I saw that childish enthusiasm in Kartik, which Murlikant Petkar needed. I also saw that hunger in Kartik – to do something that he doesn’t know before, to go into a zone that is going to be uncomfortable for him, to go through a journey of body transformation. He was so famous for his hair that he had to cut his hair and present himself differently. And, sometimes, when you see that enthusiasm in an actor, it’s half the battle won.

Watch the trailer of ‘Chandu Champion’:

What do you have to say about the biopic formula often used in Bollywood?

We call them biopics, but I am glad that people are choosing true stories because our country is full and rich with such amazing (stories), like the story of Murlikant Petkar. If we had not made this film, unfortunately, it would have probably remained uncelebrated, and we would have lost it forever. It is an amazing and inspiring story. It is actually much more bizarre than any story written by a writer sitting in a room. If it was a fictional film, people would have said ‘This can’t possibly be‘ But actually, it happened and then it shocks you. Deep in your heart, you feel like ‘Oh my God, something like this really happened’. So I’m really glad that, recently, we have started exploring our contemporary history.

As a film student, when I was growing up, I would always watch movies. I used to be jealous of Hollywood because I thought they would pick up such beautiful stories from contemporary or recent history and bring them to the screen. I used to think, ‘Why can’t we do that?’ But I am so glad that today many filmmakers are doing that and the audience is supporting and loving those films.

This is your second film with Sajid Nadiadwala. How was your collaboration?

Sajid is a great collaborator. He is one of those people who comes from that old world of the Hindi film industry where producers are really passionate about their product and they are not just money people or committees in boardrooms approving films. They are really storytellers themselves. They become the system that helps you make a film to a certain level and a certain scale. ‘Chandu…’ needed a lot of staging and Sajid helped me stage it in a certain way that I needed.

As the release draws closer, how are you feeling about sharing Chandu Champion with the world?

I am really excited. See, this is what happens when you think strongly about a story. You can’t wait to share it because that’s why you make it. We are very happy that ‘Chandu Champion’ is out. We are really happy with the response our trailer has received. It just shows that I think he has managed to find a place in people’s hearts. So I am really excited to share it with the rest of the world.