Former Indian cricket captain Kapil Dev, who is prepping actor Ranveer Singh for the upcoming film ‘’83’, is ecstatic about the surge in films on sports stars. He says it is a “good sign” as the country was not ready to make movies on sports around two decades ago.

In recent times, Bollywood has seen a slew of successful sports based movies such as ‘Mary Kom’, ‘M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story’, ‘Bhaag Milkha Bhaag’, ‘Dangal’ and ‘Sachin: A Billion Dreams’.

The film ‘’83’ essays Kapil’s captaincy in leading the Indian cricket team to defeat the West Indies in the World Cup final in 1983. Ranveer will essay Kapil’s role in the film, directed by Kabir Khan and produced by Reliance Entertainment.

Kapil said: “It was not up to me to decide who will play my character in the film. But Ranveer has such great energy. I know that he will give more than 100 per cent to the film and the entire team will make this movie a success.”  

The duo, along with the other members of the film’s cast had a preparation session at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala last month.

“Making a film like ’83’ is a beautiful idea and I know that Ranveer and team will do a great job,” added the former cricketer, who has come out with a coffee book titled “We The Sikhs”. ‘’83’ holds an even more special place for the 60-year-old cricketer as his daughter Amiya is working as an assistant director in the film.