Bollywood star Kartik Aaryan whips out his phone in the middle of our interview to show off his wallpaper. It's a picture of a shirtless Brad Pitt in the seminal 1999 film Fight Club.
For one and a half years, before shooting began for his latest film, Chandu Champion, the image would serve as an inspiration for Aaryan and his team of trainers.
"Kabir [Khan, director] and I decided early on that we need to build a body that resembled this one because it looks natural, it looks athletic and it is something which is built by sheer hard work," he tells The National.
And sheer hard work is what Aaryan, 33, has put into Chandu Champion. It's based on the inspiring story of Murlikant Petkar who, after being severely injured on the battlefield while serving in the Indian army, refuses to let his disability stop him and goes on to become a highly decorated Paralympian.
Aaryan, who made his Bollywood debut in the rom-com Pyaar Ka Punchnama in 2011, says that while he knew what the role would demand of him, both as an actor and physically, it really was Petkar's story that convinced him to do it.
"I was shocked and surprised to hear the story, because it was too unreal to be true," he says. "But I was also sad that very few people knew about him. I was really amazed by the fact that someone like this existed and I was excited that I'd get to portray him and tell his story."
Physically transforming for the role was nothing like anything he'd done before.
"It took me a while because I had gained a lot of weight in my last film, Freddy," he recalls. "But I was adamant about the fact that I wanted to do it the natural way. I didn't want to take any shortcuts so we had to be really patient.
"My diet was being controlled, my gym training, my boxing, swimming, everything was planned as if I was an athlete, like how Murlikant Petkar would have trained. It was just blinkers on go, go, go. I had no social life for a year."
Aaryan worked with a team of dieticians and trainers who specialise in various sports as Petkar was a professional boxer, swimmer and athlete, winning medals in multiple disciplines.
"And it's not just the sports," he adds. "I also trained in an army camp, where I'm carrying a guy on my shoulder one day and then running with big guns that I have to fight with. At the end of the day, you have to build that inner strength to be able to pull it off, and I think that makes it look more authentic on screen."
Acclaimed director Khan, known for blockbusters such as the record-breaking Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) and 2021's sports biopic 83, says he chose Aaryan for the role because he saw the fire in him.
"Karthik is a huge star, but until now he's been only doing romantic comedies," he told The National last month on the sidelines of CabSat, the media and entertainment exhibition where he was one of the speakers.
"I spend a lot of time with actors for the second casting. This is when I'm looking at their inherent personality, I'm looking at something they have that they're not showing yet. In Karthik, I saw this very endearing curious boy, which really suited my character because that's what Chandu Champion is about – a young boy with a burning ambition, with almost a sense of naivety about what he wants to achieve. People called him crazy, thinking he probably didn't understand the implications of what he was dreaming about.
"And that came through from Kartik. I was very clear to him what I needed from him and he committed himself. He took a year and a half away from all other work and transformed from 30 per cent body fat to 7 per cent body fat. I mean, that really shows commitment."
Having seen the first cut of the film, Aaryan says he'd do it all over again, despite all the hard work and sacrifices that went into the making of the film.
"Because it's that kind of story and you add the beauty of cinema to it and what you have is an amazing result, and that makes it all worth it," he says. He also hopes the film will be an inspiration for many viewers, not just Indians.
"This story is so universal that it will inspire a lot of people while entertaining them," he says. "It's not a sports biopic. Sports is just a background. But it's the journey of this guy who refuses to surrender and who never gave up."
Chandu Champion releases across the Middle East on Friday
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The five pillars of Islam
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
EPL's youngest
- Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
15 years, 181 days old
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
15 years, 235 days old
- Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
15 years, 271 days old
- Harvey Elliott (Fulham)
16 years, 30 days old
- Matthew Briggs (Fulham)
16 years, 68 days old
SPECS
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204.0-litre%20twin-turbo%20V8%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20750hp%20at%207%2C500rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20800Nm%20at%205%2C500rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%207%20Speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%0D%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETop%20speed%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20332kph%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2012.2L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EYear%20end%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh1%2C430%2C000%20(coupe)%3B%20From%20Dh1%2C566%2C000%20(Spider)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Haltia.ai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Arto%20Bendiken%20and%20Talal%20Thabet%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20AI%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2041%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20About%20%241.7%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self%2C%20family%20and%20friends%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Rashid & Rajab
Director: Mohammed Saeed Harib
Stars: Shadi Alfons, Marwan Abdullah, Doaa Mostafa Ragab
Two stars out of five
The five pillars of Islam
More on Quran memorisation:
Other promotions
- Deliveroo will team up with Pineapple Express to offer customers near JLT a special treat: free banana caramel dessert with all orders on January 26
- Jones the Grocer will have their limited edition Australia Day menu available until the end of the month (January 31)
- Australian Vet in Abu Dhabi (with locations in Khalifa City A and Reem Island) will have a 15 per cent off all store items (excluding medications)
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Read more from Aya Iskandarani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
