In an informal media meet, famous Indian wicket keeper Syed Kirmani met actor Sahil Khattar in Mumbai. Sahil has played the iconic wicket keeper in the Ranveer Singh starrer 83 directed by Kabir Khan. He shares how it feels to play Kirmani in front of the camera.
”It’s an absolute honour and pleasure to be associated with a legend like Syed Kirmani. Today I am sitting with him on the same dias and feel privileged. It was a herculean task for me to portray him in the film, The number of records and landmarks Kirmani Sir has achieved is remarkable. I have represented India in Asian Games in Roller Hockey and also got a bronze medal for India so there is always a natural inclination towards sports. The required training for Kirmani’s character was been provided by the legend himself and also Balwinder Sandhu. It was a long 7-month training on the ground.”
Syed Kirmani also adds, “I am glad that the film has chosen Sahil Khattar to play me. They have picked the right man. There are many similarities between us right from the bald to the beard but I am glad Sahil has come very close to nearest perfection. The moment audience will see him on screen they will see Kirmani.”
Sahil Khattar admits that he initially had reservations about choosing it as his Bollywood launch pad as “there were too many leading actors”. But his uncanny resemblance to the legendary wicket-keeper clinched the deal. He describes the months of cricket training under veteran Balwinder Singh Sandhu as full of “sweat blood and tears”.
83 is based on the Indian cricket team’s unbelievable victory in the 1983 World Cup. Directed by Kabir Khan, the film stars Ranveer Singh as Kapil Dev and Deepika Padukone as Kapil’s wife. Pankaj Tripathi, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Ammy Virk, Saqib Saleem, Hardy Sandhu, Sahil Khattar, and others also feature in this flick.
