Mahesh Manjrekar talks about playing coach of acricket team in Netflix’s Selection Day
Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; December 22, 2018)

Mahesh Manjrekar makes his digital debut in the upcoming Netflix show, Selection Day, based on Booker Prize winner Aravind Adiga’s 2016 novel by the same name. Produced by Anil Kapoor, the show revolves around two brothers who are raised by their father to be star cricket players. Manjrekar plays a cricket coach in the drama that has Ratna Pathak Shah, Rajesh Tailang, Yash Dholye and Mohammad Samad as co-stars.

The filmmaker-actor says, “For a change, I am happy to be on the set as an actor only. I am not a method actor. I do what the director tells me. I don’t think too much about every move I have to make on the set.” referring to a director as the conductor of an orchestra where 10 violinists do as they please, he adds, “In such a scenario, they will create noise, not music. Similarly, the director has to contend with different types of actors, and try to make a good film.”

Selection Day, he says, took him back to his roots. “I was a good cricketer. I was told that I could make it to the Mumbai team; playing in the Ranji trophy is a big thing. But I left the game in a fit of anger. I was a rebel and my coach Ramakant Achrekar would only make me bowl, that too with an old ball. He never allowed me to bat. No one could question him. It was the guru-shishya parampara. Irritated, I left the game forever. But then, I was not like his legendary student Sachin Tendulkar, [who was] possessed by the game.”

Manjrekar has not modelled his character on any real- life coach. “The 11 players in the team are the best. What can I teach them at that level? I only have to instill confidence and channelize their emotions.”

He says he would often play cricket on the set, much to the chagrin of the director. “I still love playing cricket,” he says, simply.

Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; August 11, 2017)

Soon after Sachin Tendulkar's biopic attracted the eye of cinephiles and fans of cricket, the story of his mentor, legendary cricket coach Ramakant Achrekar, is set to be adapted for the big screen.

Actor Rajit Kapur, who is celebrated for his portrayal of the titular role in the Doordarshan series, Byomkesh Bakshi (1993) will play Achrekar in the docu-drama titled Sir, which is set to be helmed by National Award-winning director Pramod Purswane.

Confirming the development, Purswane tells mid-day, "Rajit and I have known each other for several years. This was the perfect opportunity to collaborate." The filmmaker adds that they have already commenced shooting a month ago, and is delighted that the actor closely resembles his protagonist. "He looks the part. Achrekar's students, especially Sachin, is helping Rajit understand the man. Rajit will be able to deliver what I imagined Achrekar felt when I heard about his stories from Sachin, Chandrakant Pandit, Pravin Amre and Suresh Shastri." Given the limited footage available on the coach, Kapur says essaying the part is a challenge. "I am trying to build him up from what I was told about him. It's such a thrill to be doing the role," he says.

The film will put the spotlight on Achrekar's training methods, and how he developed the skills of arguably the greatest cricketer in Indian history. "A film about the Mumbai sports scene is incomplete without chronicling his contribution. He was a man who was able to help his students despite his own monetary compulsions."

Achrekar's students, including Amre, Pandit, Amol Muzumdar, Ajit Tendulkar and Atul Ranade, will also talk about their mentor in the film, which has been in the making for three years. With the shooting set to wrap up next month, the makers are now eyeing a December 3 release, to coincide with Achrekar's birthday.