'83' star Saqib Saleem says he 'gave everything' to the film; See his 'before & after' pic

Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone starrer 83 is set to release soon. The star-studded film is based on the true story of the Indian Cricket Team's 1983 World Cup win under the captaincy of Kapil Dev. While Ranveer is set to portray the role of Kapil Dev, Saqib Saleem, Harrdy Sandhu, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Ammy Virk and more will portray the other players of 83's Indian cricket team. To make the movie a blockbuster, all the actors went through a massive transformation. Here is how Saqib Saleem underwent an extreme body transformation to ace his role.

Saqib Saleem will portray the role of Vice Captain Mohinder Amarnath in the upcoming sports drama. The versatile actor affirms that he had been prepping for the sports drama his whole life. Saqib is an absolute cricket maniac and nerd, who played state level cricket until he turned 20. Opening up about the groundwork that went into his portrayal of Vice Captain, he conveys that years of watching and living cricket played a large hand in warming up for the film. 

Saqib Saleem's body transformation

Directed by Kabir Khan, 83 is based on India's victory in the 1983 Cricket World Cup. Saqib is part of an ensemble cast that includes Ranveer Singh, who will be seen as Captain Kapil Dev. Quitting the gym is among one of the most difficult things that Saqib did to ready himself for the role. Known as a gym junkie, the 83 actor had to steer clear of working out in the gym to appear believable as Mohinder Amarnath. The rationale being that in the 80s (the era of the film) cricketers didn't train in gyms; they ran, cycled and did bodyweight exercises. Saqib had to lose definition, bulk and cuts to look like Amarnath. 

Here is the before picture of Saqib Saleem

Committed to authenticity, Saqib not only underwent a massive body transformation, but also walked in the shoes of Amarnath to embody his composed demeanour. The actor was on a rigorous training to ace batsmanship, one of Amarnath's strongest suits. The actor's cricket background helped him sink into the character. 

Saqib Saleem's look after quitting the gym for the movie

He says, “I have been prepping for this role my entire life. As a child, teenager and until my 20s, all I wanted was to be a cricketer. I was obsessed with it. I've played cricket at the state level and I thought that someday I would pursue the sport as a profession. I was psyched when the role of Vice Captain Amarnath in 83 came to me. All those hours spend watching matches, analysing players' game and crunching numbers were well worth it. I made great memories and I gave the film everything I had.”

Details about 83

83 is set to hit the theatres on December 24, 2021. The film is helmed by Kabir Khan while Deepika Padukone, Kabir Khan, Vichnuvardhan Induri, and Madhu Mantena Varma co-bankrolled it. Here is the film's official trailer.

Inputs: PR

Image: Instagram/@ranveersingh/PR