Bollywood's Tribute to Indian Sports in 2014
Sports was a major theme for directors in the year with a few big-budget and several small-budget movies hitting the theater.
Indian sports celebrated many milestones in the year 2014. From success at the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games to a long list of domestic leagues that made international headlines, sportspersons and games at large, enjoyed being in the spotlight. Such was the frenzy that even Bollywood jumped in to celebrate tales of grit, sweat and determination.
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While movies based on sports is not new in Bollywood, the Indian film industry made a promising start in hailing heroes when a biopic on boxer Mary Kom was released earlier in the year. The film enjoyed considerable success in the Box Office and has led to many other directors planning to embark on a similar journey.
Here's taking a look at some of the Indian films that celebrated sports and athletes in the year 2014:
Mary Kom
Mary Kom was easily the biggest sports film of the year. Capturing the struggles of boxer Mary Kom could not have been an easy task but many feel the script did complete justice to the Olympic medalist.
Released to positive responses from critics and audiences, the Rs 150-million film had Priyanka Chopra in the lead role. It grossed close to Rs. 1.04 billion at the box office.
NDTV's official review gave the film two and a half out of five stars.
Hawaa Hawaai
The Amole Gupte-directed film was not based on any celebrated sportsperson. Instead, the simple tale of a young boy and his dream to skate made this film a delight.
Partho Gupte played the role of the child while Saqib Saleem was his enigmatic coach in the film. The film was released on May 9 and NDTV gave it four out of five stars.
Badlapur Boys
Kabaddi is a common sport in India but its rise and reach in urban India has been quite limited. While the inaugural Pro Kabaddi League, India's success at the Asian Games and men and women's teams winning the World Cup brought the sport into focus, Badlapur Boys also helped.
The film revolves around a team of underdog players for whom, Kabaddi is a passionate love-affair. The 'romance' though is intertwined with social and economic issues which make it an interesting story. Directed by Shailesh Verma, the film also has veteran actor Annu Kapoor in its cast.
Khwaabb
This small-budget film failed to make waves at the box office but enthusiastic movie lovers would be advised to give it a try on DVD.
Shedding light on the Indian bureaucratic setup, the story follows the journey of an athlete's struggle to succeed despite the hurdles off the track.
The film has been directed by Zaid Ali Khan and was released on 9th May.