Just a few days after MC
Mary Kom’s bronze
medal win at the 2012 Olympics (in August), filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali announced that he is producing a biopic on the boxing champion. Omung Kumar (a well-known art director), will be making his debut as a film director.
For a while now, there’s been speculation about who will play the 29-year-old boxer. Although the makers remain tightlipped, we’ve heard that Priyanka Chopra might be the frontrunner for the coveted part. Trade sources say that Katrina Kaif’s name is also in the reckoning.
“As far as we know, Priyanka is going through the script right now. But nothing can be finalised until she finishes reading it. It’s a big secret because neither Sanjay nor Omung want to let any information about the film out,” says an insider close to the development of the project.
Ask Omung (the art director on Black in 2005 and Saawariya in 2007) about the news, and he says, “Right now, we don’t know anything about the casting. We aren’t sure if it’s going to be an established star or a new face. But whoever is the chosen one will have to go through training to pick up Mary’s style, body language and moves.”
The film is likely to kick off around March-April next year, even though the female lead hasn’t been finalised yet.
The insider adds that since Priyanka shares a good equation with both Sanjay and Omung, she might have an edge over her contemporaries. “She was also in talks with Sanjay for Ram Leela (tentative title), and although things didn’t work out for that film, they want to work together soon. If all goes well, Omung’s film might see that happen,” adds the insider.
Despite repeated attempts, Sanjay remained unavailable for a comment.