Chandu Champion is Kabir Khan’s latest outing as a director, and he gives us the story of an athlete who brought glory to his country when he won its first individual gold medal in the 1972 Paralympics. Kabir Khan, through this story, plans to inform this generation about the life and struggles Muralikant Petkar had to endure just to keep up with his dream to represent India at an international level. Muralikant is a driven man, and he had many people around him who helped him achieve his goal.
Spoilers Ahead
Muralikant Petkar
Kartik Aryan, as Muralikant Petkar, was born in pre-independent India. He grew up admiring the first-ever Indian Olympian to win a medal. He joined a local akhada to be a wrestler, but fate had other plans. His fascination with becoming an Olympian was only exemplified when he joined the Indian army and realized they would be able to provide him facilities to achieve his dream. It is during this journey that he meets Tiger Ali and Karnail Singh, two people who became a crucial part of his life journey.
Muralikant Petkar becomes a boxer thanks to the dedication of his coach, Tiger Ali, and the support of his fellow boxer and best friend, Karnail Singh. He is a stubborn man for the right reasons, but since he is young, he gets carried away by the attention. In his attempt to be the world champion that could be his stepping stone towards winning an Olympic medal, he is blinded by his eagerness to win, which costs him an international game in Tokyo.
Muralikant is the kind of person who has faced many adversities, including the 1965 war with Pakistan, in which he lost people close to him. His life has been nothing but a roller coaster of obstacles being thrown at him from various directions. There are times when he has lost hope of ever winning an Olympic medal. It was not just his determination but also the support of his coach that helped him achieve his dreams. Muralikant comes from a humble background, and many have abandoned him during the crucial parts of his life. He turned his loneliness into strength and focused only on winning a medal on the Olympic stage. Almost fifty years later, the man has to struggle for his town and is tired of the development not reaching his town. However, he finds well-wishers who want to tell the people of the country about the achievements Murali has made.
Tiger Ali
Legendary actor Vijay Raaz as Tiger Ali is the catalyst that Muralikant needs in his life. With his voice of encouragement, Tiger Ali needed Muralikant to be the best and win the gold medal at every international tournament. He goes out of his way to train Muralikant and hopes to be with the man till his dream is achieved. Tiger Ali is a determined man who probably struggled all through his life to become a champion. However, it is believed that he found solace in training young athletes, and he witnessed Muralikant carrying the hunger in him to be the best boxer. Tiger Ali faced his share of adversity during the 1965 war but bounced back, probably because of the one person who wanted to see him make it, Muralikant Petkar. Tiger Ali refuses to watch Muralikant fade into oblivion. Instead, he turned his student’s strength into his superpower, which was a gateway to the 1972 Paralympics. Along with his plan to make Muralikant win, he makes sure the young man does not suffer injuries along the way. Tiger Ali, just like Muralikant, has been a part of this amazing journey that got them nothing but glory.
Karnail Singh
Bhuvan Arora is Karnail Singh. The actor gained popularity for his role in the Amazon Prime show Farzi. Bhuvan, as Karnail, played a huge part in making Muralikant the man he was—an Olympian who won gold. It was his encouragement that made Muralikant join the army, in the hope his employer would consider training him as a boxer. Karnail, just like Muralikant, was a good boxer, but he never felt insecure or overshadowed by his success Muralikant was witnessing for his winning streak at an international event in Tokyo. Karnail was a good support system for Muralikant and was only pushing him to be the best version of himself. Long after the 1965 war, he remained an important figure in Muralikant’s life and was one of his inspirations to win gold at the Paralympics.
Topaz
The famous Hindi comedy actor Rajpal Yadav is Topaz, who worked at the hospital in Mumbai where Muralikant was admitted for surgery. The man was not in the right state of mind when he moved to this hospital, which eventually became his second home. It was Topaz who made his life lively and never treated him any differently. Topaz did not treat Muralikant with pity, which made him feel like a normal person who had aspirations just like any other person.
Muralikant refused to be bogged down by the system and their rules, and to support him, Topaz would always show up in his support. He was one of the few people who was genuinely happy when Muralikant won the medal and one of the many supporting pillars that showed up without him ever having to ask for it.
Sachin Tamble
Shreyas Talpade is slowly making a comeback in Hindi movies. His last excellent outing was in “Kaun Pravin Tambe” as the cricketer who became a part of the Indian cricket team at a later stage of his life. Shreyas Talpade, as Sachin Tamble, the police officer at a local police station in the interiors of Maharashtra, refused to believe the story of Muralikant Petkar or accept the complaint the old man wanted to file. Sachin was initially in awe of the man who was sitting in front of him, and he slowly realized he could contribute to making Muralikant Petkar a sensation if a journalist was brought into the picture to give the aging athlete the attention he deserved. Sachin is one of the many good Samaritans Muralikant Petkar made acquaintances with who went out of their way to aid the man.
Jagannath Petkar
Aniruddh Dave is Jagannath Petkar, Muralikant’s older brother, who was his pillar of support for many years until he wasn’t. Jagannath was the first person to decide Murali’s fate post his brother’s war-related partial paralysis. He chose to abandon his younger brother at the peak of Muralikant’s adversity, citing financial difficulties and a lack of medical facilities in their hometown. This broke Muralikant’s heart, as his family left him to fend for himself. It was this decision by his brother that encouraged Muralikant to decide to live for himself and work towards bigger goals in life. Jagannath had his reason, and since the times were different, he had to make the tough call for his aging parents.
