BY SACNILK

Mumbai, Dec 27 (IANS) Bollywood actor Saqib Saleem, who played the character of cricketer Mohinder Amarnath in '83', says getting the mannerisms and body language of the cricket star right without mocking him was quite a thin line that he had to maintain.## In conversation with IANS, Saqib shares, "When we were starting the film, Kabir told us that every actor has to become them instead of pretending to act like them. So, for me, it was like imbibing Jimmy sir's body language where I was holding the very essence of how he would move his shoulders, walk on the field, etc.## "We cannot change that because those are their signature body language that the world has seen...we can see it on all the footage that are available online. But for me, it was a tight rope to walk where we did those mannerisms without mocking them".## "Since we were preparing for a year, the body language became my second nature, it was not looking like mocking anymore eventually", he added.## As the film is based on the victory of the Indian cricket team that won the World Cup 1983 led by Kapil Dev, the actor shared how it was a moment of nostalgia to watch the film with his father Saleem Qureshi.## Drawing a parallel between real and reel life Saqib said, "You know my father is a huge fan of Mohinder Amarnath. So for me, it was one of those special films where I wanted to impress my father and I wanted him to feel proud of me for my acting. Quite interestingly, Jimmy sir during the World Cup also was trying to impress his father Lalaji with his performance.## "Yes, he came from a privileged background but he was a most responsible and humble man who understood the duty of being the son of an iconic cricketer like Lala Amarnath. He was trying to prove how deserving he is to be an Amarnath".## Lala Amarnath was the first cricket captain of independent India. He was also the first batsman to score a century in Test cricket for India. Mohindar Amarnath is the son of Lala Amarnath.## Asked about what was his understanding of Mohindar as a personality and Saqib shared, "I asked him that when he used to face the fast bowling of West Indies cricket greats like Michael Holding, Malcolm Marshall, Andy Roberts, what was going on in his head? Jimmy sir laughed and replied, 'Beta uss time pe agar zyada dimaag chalate na, to ball saar pe lag ke wahin khatam ho jaate...we were just doing our basics right. That is it, it was all about those few seconds in between and your reflexes".## Directed by Kabir Khan, '83' released in theatres on Friday.## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, Dec 24 (IANS) Ranveer Singh, who plays Kapil Dev in '83', shared a picture of his mother Anju Bhavnani holding the World Cup that the Indian skipper and his vice-captain, Mohinder Amarnath, lifted on June 25, 1983, at Lord's. ## Ranveer took to his Instagram and captioned the picture: "Hum jeet gaye, Mumma! (ps: that's the actual cup!) #ThisIs83 #83TheFilm @83thefilm (sic)." ## Ranveer's fellow actor, Harrdy Sandhu, who plays Madan Lal in '83', commented with heart emojis under the picture. ## Actress Richa Chadha, too, took to the comments section and wrote: "Jeet gaye! Thanks for this historic film. Thanks also for waiting for the cinemas for this one. It's a sixer!!!" She was referring to the long time '83' was kept on hold because its makers wanted the film to be released in theatres only. ## Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan's daughter and columnist, Shweta Bachchan, commented: "Adorable". ## 🏆 Hum jeet gaye, Mumma! 🧿❤️🙏🏽(ps: that’s the actual cup!) 🤩#ThisIs83 #83TheFilm @83thefilm pic.twitter.com/MCwUSc7q74— Ranveer Singh (@RanveerOfficial) December 24, 2021 ## Stay Tuned To Sacnilk For More Updates.

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, Dec 24 (IANS) '83' cast member Saqib Saleem, who plays 1983 World Cup Final Man of the Match Mohinder Amarnath, has said the film fulfilled his long-standing dream of playing for Team India. ## As the Kabir Khan directorial hit the theatres on Friday, the actor took to his Instagram account and shared a video conceptualised and created by himself. ## The video strings together Saqib's journey from being a cricket aspirant to becoming an actor who got to portray Amarnath, who was also the vice-captain in 1983, on screen. ## The actor wrote in his caption: "Destiny connected the dots when #83 came to me with a chance to live my dream of playing cricket for India. NOTHING beats the pride & gratitude I felt wearing the Indian cricket uniform as #MohinderAmarnath." ## The video, which shows bits of his preparations, some dramatised, some re-shot and some from behind the scenes of making of the film, is a moving imagery of what this film means to the actor. ## On Wednesday night, after a special screening in Mumbai, an emotionally charged Amarnath had gifted his trademark good-luck charm -- the red handkerchief that he carried with him wherever he played cricket, a tradition he inherited from his father, Lala Amarnath, the first Indian to score a Test century. ## Amarnath, who, incidentally, also plays his father in '83', had coached Saqib during the making of Rohit Dhawan's 2016 film, 'Dishoom', which also starred John Abraham and Varun Dhawan. ## Stay Tuned To Sacnilk For More Updates.

BY SACNILK

Film: '83' (Showing in theatres); Duration: 163 minutes. ## Director: Kabir Khan. Cast: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Pankaj Tripathi, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Saqib Saleem, Neena Gupta, Boman Irani, Ammy Virk, Chirag Patil, Dinker Sharma, Nishant Dahiya, Harrdy Sandhu, Sahil Khattar, Adinath Kothare and Dhairya Karwa. ## IANS Rating: **** ## New Delhi, Dec 24 (IANS) Director Kabir Khan's ‘83' is a recreation of a momentous event - the Indian cricket team's first-ever World Cup victory in 1983. Despite being predictable, the film offers an exhilarating and occasionally touching experience that has viewers leaving the auditorium caught up in an afterglow of excited patriotism. ## The film mounted like a brilliantly restored or recreated documentary, captures the three and a half months of - 'the may or may not win' drama, where the actors and few of the actual players seamlessly weave in and out of the narrative. ## The film focuses only on cricket and has everything that cricket fans could have possibly hoped for. The narrative- highlights and flashes the crucial matches and the moments in-between them, bringing back memories to the big screen after nearly 38 years. ## As you are transported back in time, you witness how the 'underdog' Indian team was treated with disdain, and despite all odds, how they emerged as winners. It is invigorating to witness the matches once again and your mood swings like Kapil's bat. You cheer for him when he creates history with a fabulous 175- not out against the Zimbabwe team, and your blood boils when you realise that the legendary game was not recorded on camera because BBC did not think it was important enough. ## What you see on screen is Kapil's charisma, the locker-room banter, the occasional tension and problematic behaviour between the teammates, the strategy they planned during the matches and above all, the anguish and thrills of the matches played during that unforgettable summer. ## Casting is another aspect of the film that could not have been better either. Ranveer with his prosthetic dentures- oddly resembles Kapil Dev, but he slips into his shoes effortlessly delivering a brilliant performance that tugs at the heartstrings. While he emulates the captain of the team, Saqib Saleem plays Mohinder Amarnath, Tahir Raj Bhasin essays Sunil Gavaskar, Jatin Sarna is Yashpal Sharma, Jiiva is K. Srikkanth, Harrdy Sandhu is Madan Lal, Nishant Dahiya is Roger Binny, Ammy Virk plays Balwinder Sandhu, Addinath Kothare is Dilip Vengsakar, Dhairya Karwa is Ravi Shastri, Chirag Patil is Sandip Patil. ## Boman Irani as the commentator Farrokh Engineer, Pankaj Tripathi as PR Man Singh, Neena Gupta as Kapil's caring and supportive mother, and Deepika Padukone as Kapil's wife Romi have their moments of on-screen glory. ## The film is astutely mounted, with ace production values. ## Overall, the narrative - like most of Kabir Khan's films - is unabashedly manipulative, but this one delivers a cinema experience one won't be able to forget about anytime soon. ## Stay Tuned To Sacnilk For More Such Updates.

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, Dec 23 (IANS) Moved by the performance of Saqib Saleem in '83', the man he plays in the film, 1983 World Cup final Man of the Match, Mohinder 'Jimmy' Amarnath, gifted the young actor the red handkerchief that he always carried with him as his good luck charm. ## This happened immediately after the special screening of the film late on Wednesday night in Mumbai.## Mohinder Amarnath, interestingly, plays his father, Lala Amarnath Bharadwaj, the first Indian to score a century in Test cricket. Amarnath Sr, whom many remember for his expert comments during the early days of cricket telecasts, also never failed to carry a red handkerchief whenever he would step onto the field or make a public appearance.## After making his debut as a quick-bowling all-rounder against Australia in Chennai in December 1969, Mohinder Amarnath got promoted as a top-order batsman, playing mainly at No. 3, and soon won the admiration of the pace bowlers faced, mainly Pakistan's Imran Khan and Malcolm Marshall of West Indies.## In the 1983 World Cup final, Amarnath's batting against the fierce pace attack of West Indies brought some respite for the Indian side as he gave some much needed stability. He stood at the crease facing 80 balls and scored 26 runs.## After a dismal batting performance, India's chances to win the Cup were written off. The team, however, turned around the game with its bowling attack. They leveraged the weather and pitch conditions, limiting West Indies to just 140 runs. ## Both Amarnath and Madan Lal were the joint highest wicket-takers, having picked up three wickets each, Amarnath giving away just 12 runs in seven overs. Quite naturally, he was declared Man of the Match. And as vice-captain of the team, he got to lift the World Cup in the historic photograph along with Kapil Dev. ## Currently, the veteran cricketer often goes behind the mic for the Hindi commentary. He also has two brothers, Surinder Amarnath, who is a former Test player having played for India, and Rajinder Amarnath, who is a former first class cricketer. ## Stay Tuned To Sacnilk For Such Updates.

BY SACNILK

The year 1983 was a pathbreaking year for the Indian cricket when Kapil Dev's boys pave the way for the next generation to take up the sport. The 1983 World Cup was just the third edition of the tournament. The first two World Cups were won by the mighty West Indies and was aiming to make the hat-trick. ## India truly dominated the tournament winning 6 out of 8 matches including the final at the Lord's. India had only 183 runs to defend to win the title which at the halfway stage was looking very difficult but the inspired bowling performances had not only helped India to defend the target but also helped to win by a fair margin of 43-runs. 28 years later, the MS Dhoni brigade repeated history, as Captain Cool launched the winning six into the Wankhede stands. ## The interesting thing about the 1983 and 2011 World Cup is that we know everything that was there to know about the 2011 World Cup but it was not the same with the 1983 World Cup. There were a lot of things that went unheard about the tournament as the information was not so easily available in 1983. ## Here are top 10 of the interesting and unheard facts about the Indian team that won the tournament in 1983 - ## 1. When the Indian team was leaving for England to play the World Cup, they were without a coach, doctor and even a physiotherapist.## 2. In the absence of a designated coach, it was Mohinder Amarnath who shouldered the responsibilities. Along with Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar, he decided the batting and bowling order of the team.## 3. Kapil Dev scored a brilliant 175 against Zimbabwe. Unfortunately, the match wasn’t recorded as the BBC was on a strike that day.## 4. Talking about the betting going into the World Cup finale, India’s odds were placed at 66:1. Tells you a lot about the dominant position India was in during the tournament.## 5. When Sir Vivian Richards was tearing apart the Indian attack in the final, Madan Lal went up to Kapil Dev and said to him, 'You give me the ball. I have earlier dismissed Vivian Richards and I can do it again'. And the rest, as they say, is history.## 6. Sandeep Patil had broken his ribs two weeks before the tournament but still, he traveled to England and played fearlessly in the tournament.## 7. During those days, a player was paid around Rs.12,500 for every match. But after the World Cup win, the BCCI announced a prize of Rs.2 lakh for the entire team. However, Sunil Gavaskar refused to accept the money. ## 8. When the news of India’s victory reached veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar, she organized a music concert for the Indian cricket team. The money received from this concert was distributed among the 14 Indian players, with each player getting Rs.1 lakh.## 9. Before the tournament, Wisden Cricketer Monthly editor David Frith had written that he will eat his words if India wins the Cup. After a reader pointed it out, Firth literally ate his own article and published a picture of it in his magazine. ## 10. Before the 1983 World Cup, India had won only one match in the previous two World Cups (1975, 1979). ## Stay tuned...