Ajay Devgn to Play Legendary Football Coach Syed Abdul Rahim, Biopic to be Produced by Boney Kapoor

Following the footsteps of his contemporaries Aamir Khan and Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn has announced his plans of doing a sports biopic. The film will be based on Syed Abdul Rahim, Indian football team’s most successful coach and manager from 1950-1963.

Amit Sharma, who has previously helmed Arjun Kapoor-starrer Tevar, will direct the film, to be produced by Boney Kapoor and Zee studios. The announcement was made by Sharma on his official Twitter account.

"I am honoured to be part of this incredible untold story a biopic on India’s legendary #football coach #SyedAbdulRahim Starring @ajaydevgn produced by #BoneyKapoor @ZeeStudios_ & @freshlimefilms screenplay by @SaiwynQ, and dialogues by @writish," he wrote.

Under Rahim's leadership, India, which currently ranks 97 in the charts today, beat some of the top teams in the world. India won a gold at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta, beating one of the strongest teams of that time, South Korea.

Talking about Devgn playing the lead role in the sports biopic, Boney Kapoor told Indian Express, “An actor like Ajay is most apt for essaying this character. We hope that the film inspires millions of youngsters and soon India plays in the World Cup and becomes a potent force in World Football.”