First look poster of Ajay Devg’n starrer Maidaan is out. Based on the golden years of Indian football, the film is being directed by Amit Ravindernath Sharma of 'Badhaai Ho' fame. Ajay is seen sporting a composed look of the 50s with a well-trimmed mustache, tossing a football in the air as he carries an umbrella and office briefcase on one hand. Ajay will portray Syed Abdul Rahim who served as coach and manager of Indian football team from 1950 until his death due to cancer in 1963.
Ajay Devgn summed up the film's storyline in just a few words and tweeted: "Yeh kahaani hai Indian football ke golden phase ki aur uske sabse badey aur successful coach ki (This is the story of Indian football's golden phase and of its biggest and most success coach)." The phase lead by Syed Abdul Rahim is considered the be the golden phase of Indian football as it went on to win at several international platforms like Asian games in 1951 and 1962. India also entered Melbourne Olympics semi-finals in 1956 under Rahim’s guidance.
“Badlav lane ke liye ek akela bhi kafi hota hai”#Maidaan@Priyamani6 @raogajraj @boneykapoor @iAmitRSharma @freshlimefilms @saiwynQ @actorrudranil @writish @saregamaglobal @zeestudios_ @zeestudiosint @BayViewProjOffl @MaidaanOfficial pic.twitter.com/YQTMPCaVXR
— Ajay Devgn (@ajaydevgn) January 30, 2020
Yeh kahaani hai Indian football ke Golden phase ki aur uske sabse badey aur successful coach ki.#Maidaan@Priyamani6 @raogajraj @BoneyKapoor @iAmitRSharma @freshlimefilms @SaiwynQ @ActorRudranil @writish @saregamaglobal @ZeeStudios_ @ZeeStudiosInt @BayViewProjOffl pic.twitter.com/djVktm8bft
— Ajay Devgn (@ajaydevgn) January 30, 2020
The film is presented by Zee Studios and Boney Kapoor. Kapoor will also serve as the producer along with Akash Chawla and Arunava Joy Sengupta. Talking about the film, Boney had earlier told India Today in an interview, ''I was amazed that not many are aware of someone as significant as Syed Abdul Rahim. He’s an unsung hero whose achievements must be saluted. His team had heroes like Chunni Goswami, PK Banerjee, Balaram, Franco and Arun Ghosh. It takes someone like Ajay Devgn to play Syed Abdul Rahim. With him on board, I can just hope that our film inspires youngsters to play football, and India soon to bring the World Cup home.''
The film will also feature south star Priyamani last seen opposite Manoj Bajpayee in Family Man, who replaced Keerthy Suresh recently. Keerthy, who was roped in to play the character of a mother, left the project as the makers felt that she looked “too young” for the part. “Keerthy shot for the film for a day.
Also Read: Priyamani Replaces Keerthy Suresh In Ajay Devgn’s ‘Maidaan’, Know More
As per a report in an entertainment portal, the film will have footballers from over 11 countries around the world that include Australia, Finland, France, Spain, Vietnam, Japan and Thailand along with some from India.
Maidaan is slated to hit screens on November 27 this year.