Naturally gifted Syed Kirmani, wicket-keeper of India’s 1983 World Cup-winning team, on his look and the committed Sahil Khattar, who plays him in Kabir Khan’s next
Hiren Kotwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 27, 2020)

Former cricketer Syed Kirmani, who was adjudged best wicket-keeper of the 1983 World Cup, is thrilled about his screen avatar in Kabir Khan’s ’83. In the Ranveer Singh-fronted sports-drama, the 70-year-old veteran is essayed by YouTube sensation Sahil Khattar who, like him, sports a bald pate and routinely experiments with his facial fuzz. “His look is the most accurate among the cast,” Kirmani asserts, adding that even family, friends and fans agree Sahil is definitely “Kiri bhai”.

He admits it’s “difficult to copy someone” and recalls how in their first interaction Sahil told him with great humility, “I cannot even get close to you, but it is an honour to play you on screen.” To help him prep up, Kirmani familiarised the debutant actor with his unique wicket-keeping style and all-natural talent. “In those days, there were no videos to see how different individuals played. We had to watch it live and remember.”

His look was quite the talking point in the 1980s with the wicket keeper being compared to Yul Brynner, the Hollywood superstar, and Telly Savalas, who did the film Kojak, after he went bald in 1981. “Once, I was gardening when three youngsters asked me if I was Syed Kirmani. The next day, all three turned up bald. (Filmmaker) Rakesh Roshan, who used to wear a wig in films, threw it away when he realised that being bald was in vogue. Even the President of Indonesia chose to go bald after seeing me. I’d once grown my hair, but my fans didn’t appreciate it, so I went back to my ‘original’ look,” reminisces the veteran cricketer who, like his team-mates, is looking forward to the film, which is produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, Madhu Mantena, Deepika Padukone, Kabir and Vishnu Vardhan Induri, having heard a lot of good things from Sunil Gavaskar who was present at the practice sessions.

Incidentally, the original team of 1983 keeps in touch through a WhatsApp group and Kirmani informs that Balwinder Singh Sandhu, who has coached the actors, keeps them updated on the progress of the film with regular pictures. “The film’s team played on many of the grounds where we did and will the World Cup of ’83 will be revived in everyone’s minds,” Kirmani promises.

Lakshmi V (BOMBAY TIMES; January 16, 2020)

Krishnamacharii Srikkanth was known for his swashbuckling stroke play. And looks like Tamil actor Jiiva, who plays the former Indian opening batsman in the upcoming sports drama ’83, has hit the ball out of the park with his transformation as Srikkanth (Chika). His look was unveiled on Sunday, and the actor has been receiving rave reviews since then.

The fanboy in Jiiva comes to the fore when he talks about playing his childhood idol, who he’d first met as a starstruck Class VIII student. “It was for a school project, and we were asked to interview one person who inspired us. I interviewed Chika. It was in the year 1996, I think,” recollects Jiiva with a smile. Talking about his look, he adds, “We didn’t use any prosthetics. We only worked on the hairstyle and I grew a moustache.”

So, how easy or difficult was it to become Srikkanth on screen? “I’m a street player. If you’ve noticed boys who play gully cricket, you would have figured out how they always boast about how they are going to bowl like Javagal Srinath or Waqar Younis or Wasim Akram,” he shares. “Many of my friends are batsmen and they used to bat like Brian Lara or hold a stance like Sachin Tendulkar. In fact, most tennis ball cricketers play like Srikkanth. Gully cricketers can adapt to any style of batting or bowling,” explains Jiiva.

The actor had expert guidance from former cricketer Balwinder Singh Sandhu to get nuances of Srikanth’s batting right. “My bat lift was different from Chika’s, and to help me understand how he would hold and bat, Balwinder Singh Sandhu sir came down from Mumbai. Since I couldn’t attend the training camp for the first three months, I used to practice in Chennai. My friend Vineet Padmanabhan is also a cricketer, and he used to help me with the game here. Balwinder sir used to send us videos and we’d also send him videos of what we did here. He’d tell me what corrections I had to make, and Kabir Khan (director) would also tell me if what I was doing was fine,” says Jiiva, adding, “It’s not like I transformed into Chika in just one day. I breathed this character and lived the role, and playing him perfectly was a big deal for me. But I was confident I could pull it off because I have had the opportunity to interact with him and I’ve followed his game.”

The actor admits his confidence increased when Sunil Gavaskar came to the set once. “We were doing a take one day, just to see how everybody was in the frame. Gavaskar was silently observing the shot. He then called out on the mic and told me that I looked exactly like Chika,” he says, adding, “Gundappa Viswanath sir, Gordon Greenidge and Clive Lloyd also said I resembled Chika.”

Kabir Khan is ebullient as he wraps up a three-month shoot for his Ranveer Singh-starrer in London, bang on schedule
Himesh Mankad (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 2, 2019)

On Sunday, Kabir Khan wrapped up a three-month schedule of his sports drama, ’83, in London, which features Ranveer Singh as then-skipper Kapil Dev who led Team India to its first cricket World Cup win in 1983. For the director and the team, it was an emotional moment as they had become close, like a family, during the shoot, and felt a sense of triumph after wrap-up, quite like the historic win. “It was like we had won the World Cup too,” Kabir laughs. “I knew ’83 was an ambitious film and we have achieved more than what we had planned.”

The director, who is also producing the film with Sajid Nadiadwala, Madhu Mantena, Shibasish Sarkar and Vishnu Induri, goes on to add that since logistically it was a difficult shoot, he airdashed to London every month for a year to work with the local production crew to get the required permissions. “Securing permissions to film at some places, like inside Lord’s cricket ground, was not easy. This is the first unit that has ventured into the players’ locker room and the long room there,” he points out, saying since they were recreating a real event, there was a lot of detailing involved in terms of locations and replications. “We had to make half of London look like it did in ’83. Shooting at Lord’s on the last day was magical.”

The film kicked off in London on June 5 and a major chunk of the shoot coincided with the 2019 World Cup. While many matches were interrupted by rain, Kabir’s screen journey was hassle-free. “We have been blessed by the Gods of cricket. We got so much goodwill from legends like Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev, Jimmy Amarnath, Balwinder Singh Sandhu and Clive Lloyd that even the rain god helped us out,” Kabir exults. “When we were shooting interiors, it would rain the entire day, but the minute we stepped out, it would stop. It’s rare and next to impossible for anybody to complete a big shoot in the UK on time. On paper, we were to end on September 1, and we are done,” he signs off on an ebullient note.

Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; February 19, 2019)

He has been winning kudos for his turn as a rapper in Gully Boy. However, Ranveer Singh has already started the prep for his next. The superstar will be seen essaying former cricket captain Kapil Dev in ’83, based on India’s first World Cup win.

Ranveer, who has begun training with Balwinder Singh Sandhu, a member of the 1983 winning team, says, “Ballu sir, as we call him, is an amazing coach. I train with him for four hours everyday in Mumbai. I focus on my bowling and do a lot of physio. I’m doing better in batting because from my childhood, I’ve had a natural ability for it. I’m a good fielder too. But I need to work particularly hard on my bowling,” says the actor.

He adds that he is besotted by his coach. “Ballu sir is a warm and lovable person. Spending time with him is the best way to start your morning. He is the epitome of positivity, so full of life and stories, which are entertaining and funny. The boys are working hard trying to get into the skin of their characters. We have an ensemble of fine actors and I’m also getting to know them.”

The Simmba star adds that he is privileged to be entrusted with the responsibility of telling this extraordinary cricketing tale. He elaborates, “The film’s story is one of the most glorious chapters in our nation’s sporting history. Kabir (Khan) director and I were discussing that we don’t have to do much there. You just tell the story, and it has got everything — a spectacular, unreal tale. There’s an entire generation who doesn’t know about it — how they did it and the fashion in which they achieved the victory.”

As reported by After Hrs, part of Ranveer’s prep will be spending time with Kapil. “I’m hoping to become his shadow. I will follow him wherever he goes and try to pick as much as possible from him. I hope to get some tips on bowling and batting from the man himself. I have never done this before. This will be a first for me, a unique process of spending time with the person I play on screen,” he signs off.

Director Kabir Khan talks about Ranveer Singh’s recent visit to the Lord’s Cricket Ground in London and the prep for his film titled 83 that recaps the story of India’s first win in the cricket World Cup
Rachana Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; August 26, 2018)

It was in June this year when India celebrated the 35th anniversary of their thumping win at the 1983 Cricket World Cup held in England. Team India, considered an underdog side at that point, beat a leading side like West Indies to bring home the World Cup for the first time in history, which was repeated decades later in 2011.

Director-writer Kabir Khan will showcase India’s first World Cup win in cricket in his upcoming film, aptly titled 83. Earlier this month, Ranveer Singh, who headlines the cast of this period sports drama, was seen watching an India V/s England test match at the Lord’s Cricket Ground in London with Kabir and Sachin Tendulkar.

The prep for Kabir’s venture has finally begun, which he had proudly shared on social media. Ranveer is expected to undergo a month-long training under Kapil Dev, whose part he emulates in the film. However, Kabir insists that his film traces the journey of the entire team that registered the win and not any one player in particular.

Talking about his visit, the filmmaker, says, “While the prep for the film has begun, I’m still researching the subject. I was at the Lord’s, going through bundles of hand-written score-sheets, which have been beautifully preserved by them. It’s a ball-by-ball record of the matches that became a part of history.”

When asked about Ranveer’s visit to the ground, Kabir says, “Ranveer visited Lord’s Cricket Ground to get a feel of what it’s like for Team India to play in England. After that match, he also visited places, like a museum there that houses memorabilia from that World Cup. He was there for a few days. I stayed back for a few more days to visit libraries, meet people and trace records of those times.”

In his previous chat with BT, Kabir had told us about the incredible behind-the-scene stories, which he has culled out of people who had seen the historic matches in 1983, and witnessed Team India’s rise to its well-deserved stardom. “Apart from the technical information around the game, there is not too much information readily available about 1983. Luckily, we could track down people who had fascinating anecdotes about the team and the atmosphere in India and England at that time. What we’re trying to recreate is perhaps the most defining moment for cricket as far as India goes. So, we have to be careful with the technicalities while showing the sport. I am spending time with the players of the team and getting the background information from them. What happened on the field is present on video. It’s what really led to that win that forms the thrust of the narrative,” says Kabir.

While the casting process is on, it’s said that Kapil Dev will train some of the key actors in the film, particularly Ranveer Singh. Bring this up, and Kabir says that Balwinder Singh Sandhu, who was in the 83 squad and eventually became one of the best coaches for Team India, will be a part of the entire filming process, while individual players will train actors who will emulate them on screen.

“There will be a detailed training for all the actors involved because there is a section of the audience that knows these players thoroughly and they need to be satisfied. We have to get everything bang on. Kapil Dev is one of the greatest players we have ever had and he will be a part of the project in as many ways as possible,” the director sums up.