Chandu Champion Director Kabir Khan Shares Why He Picked Kartik Aaryan To Play Murlikant Petkar

Director Kabir Khan shares the reason why he decided to go with Kartik Aaryan as the lead in 'Chandu Champion'.

‘Chandu Champion’ chronicles the life of India's first Paralympic gold medalist, Murlikant Petkar. ( Image Source :Instagram (kartikaaryan) )

Director Kabir Khan, who is currently busy promoting his film ‘Chandu Champion’, shared the reason why he decided to go with Kartik Aaryan as the lead. The biopic, based on the life of Paralympic gold medalist Murlikant Petkar, was released a couple of days ago. Although the film did not open to expected numbers at the box office, Kartik’s performance is being praised by critics and audiences.

Kabir Khan talks about picking Kartik Aaryan for Chandu Champion

In a recent interview with Bollywood Hungama, Kabir Khan narrated how he met Kartik to approach him for the latest film. Speaking of the character, he said, "I needed that youthfulness. I needed somebody who could pass off as this young, almost bordering on that youthful naivety when he says those things, and some people can shoulder a reasonably, you know, decent budget because the scale of the film is a certain size; it's not a small film that you can just make for 30–40 days; it needed a certain scale and a certain mounting. I don't usually cost according to previous films because, if you have noticed, I like to take an actor and not use them in their existing image, but for me, at least in my career, it has always worked when pushing them into a zone that is uncomfortable for them. Whether it's John and Katrina in New York, or whether it's even Salman in Bajrangi."

Kabir Khan says it was refreshing to met Kartik

Kabir Khan met Kartik to discuss the film 'Chandu Champion' after the release of the actor's superhit film, 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2'. The film went on to become the fourth highest-grossing Hindi film of 2022.

"So I met Kartik, and because I knew he was a young man, the young star who is sort of upcoming and really successful. And we had a long conversation. It was going to be like a dinner meeting, which I thought would last for 30–40 minutes. We ended up chatting for two and a half hours. And there was something there—that energy. I could sense that this boy would go the extra mile. He had the excitement and the hunger to do something different, but it wasn't something to build on the successes," the director said. 

"And I'll tell you about something that I found very endearing and refreshing. I met him maybe two weeks after he released his blockbuster, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. We know that in this industry, when you meet an actor two weeks after a blockbuster, he wants to talk about at least our half-hour in service of that film before you can. In the two and a half hours, the boy didn't even mention that film. It was only about ‘What do you want to do with me?’ he added. 

‘Chandu Champion’ chronicles the life of India's first Paralympic gold medalist in freestyle swimming, Murlikant Petkar. Directed by Kabir Khan, the film stars Kartik Aaryan as the titular character. The biopic also features Vijay Raaz, Bhuvan Arora and Rajpal Yadav in pivotal roles.