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.”

Sonia Lulla (MID-DAY; January 30, 2019)

He may be miles away from Mumbai, where the hustle around Ranveer Singh-starrer '83 has garnered momentum, but South star Jiiva has commenced work on the film in full swing. “I began training for the part last month,” says the actor, who will reprise the role of former Indian cricket team captain, Krishnamachari Srikanth in the film based in the country’s first world cup win in the sport.

“[Former Indian cricketer] Balwinder [Singh] Sandhu had visited me here in Chennai to notice my batting form and see how well-versed I was about cricket. Since then, we have been in touch regularly. Since I must pick up the nuances of batting correctly, I have been exchanging videos of my progress with [his team] regularly,” he tells mid-day.

Work on another South Indian film has kept the actor on his toes. “For this film, I am doing [outdoor] exercises instead of training in the gym, which is also aiding my prep for '83. I have a personal trainer who is helping me build my stamina. The workout routine is intense and there is a fair amount of cardiovascular training involved,” says the actor, adding that he must shed seven kilos to look “lean and young” for the part. “[I’m focusing on] getting [Srikanth’s] nuances and body language on point. I have started watching his videos online, and those of the '83 matches as well.”

Confessing to being a fan of the actor, producer Madhu Mantena says, “I had seen his film, KO (2011) and had wanted to remake it here in Hindi. I’m finally getting a chance to work with him. I can’t think of anyone better to play Srikanth.”