New Delhi: The makers of the upcoming film '800', which is a biopic on Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan, on Monday unveiled the first motion poster on the occasion of the Sri Lankan cricket legend's 51st birthday.
The producers shared the poster of the Tamil film, starring ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ actor Madhurr Mittal in the role of the spinner, on Monday. Vijay Sethupathi was earlier roped in to play the cricketer.
"We are proud to bring you his story beyond the twists & turns across 22 yards. #HappyBirthdayMuralidaran. Presenting '800', the official bio-pic of #MuthiahMuralidaran starring #MadhurrMittal," the banner posted on Twitter.
Actor Madhurr Mittal also took to Instagram to share the poster. He wrote, “Extremely grateful for the opportunity to portray the legend, Muthiah Muralidaran in #800. @murali_800 #GOAT 🏏 Launching the first look on his birthday, that he shares with my dearest mother, makes it even more special for me. 💙 Coming soon to cinemas in Tamil, Telugu & Hindi.”
Written-directed by MS Sripathy, the film is titled ‘800’, after the record number of wickets Muralitharan took in Test cricket. Muralitharan represented Sri Lanka in 133 Tests, 350 ODIs and 12 T20 Internationals. He took a staggering 800 wickets in the longest format, 534 in the ODIs and 13 in the T20s. He was also part of Sri Lanka's ODI World Cup triumph in 1996.
When Vijay Sethupathi opted out of the Muralithara biopic
The film was announced in 2020 with Vijay Sethupathi as the lead, but the actor left the film following the outrage from Tamil nationalists. He had attached a copy of Muralitharan’s official statement. In the statement, Muralitharan has requested Sethupathi to back out from the film. While sharing the statement, the actor wrote, ‘Thank you and goodbye’.
Muralitharan’s statement read, “I am releasing this statement since there is a lot of controversy in Tamil Nadu around my biopic 800. I am aware of the flak Vijay Sethuapthi has been receiving for signing my biopic. There are people who have a wrong understanding of my views who are behind Vijay Sethupathi. I don’t want one of the best actors in Tamil Nadu to go through this. Also, fearing the consequences Vijay Sethupathi could face for signing the film in the future, I request him to opt-out of the film.” “I have never given up when I have faced obstacles in my life. Similarly, I will overcome this obstacle. I accepted my biopic because I thought it would be an inspiration for youngsters and young aspiring cricketers. I believe we will overcome this obstacle and take this film to the audience. The makers of the film have told me they will come out with an announcement on the film soon, I would be helping them in all the ways I can. I would like to thank the press, media channels, politicians, Kollywood actors, Vijay Sethupathi fans, and Tamil people for supporting me during this time”, added the statement.
'800' will be released in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi languages.