Actor Sushant Singh Rajput was keen on bringing the story of India’s first Paralympic gold medallist Murlikant Petkar to the big screen, as per a report.
The actor had even visited Petkar and his family in order to know about the Paralympic gold medallist’s life and achievements. They reside in Ganesh Colony area of Thergaon at Pimpri-Chinchwad.
According to The Indian Express, when Petkar heard the news of the actor’s death, he could not believe it. “How can such a down-to-earth human being, with no trace of arrogance, die so young? I was completely shattered,” said the Paralympic gold medallist.
The gold medallist, recalling his first meeting with Rajput, said that the actor told him that he had read a book, titled Courage Beyond Compare, which is based on the lives of many athletes, including Petkar.
The untimely passing away of Rajput has shaken the gold medallist’s family, reported the news website quoting Murlikant’s son Arjun.
Arjun also informed that his father had hardly spoken anything since he got the news. He said that Rajput was impressed with his father’s achievements, so much so that the actor expressed his willingness to play the role of Petkar in a biopic.
“This was about three to four years ago, when he was working on his role to play cricketer M S Dhoni,” Arjun added.
Petkar, who won the gold medal at the 1972 Summer Paralympics held at Heidelberg in Germany, once served as a jawan in the Indian Army. He was a swimmer and even went on to set a world record in the 50-m freestyle swimming event. In the 1965 war against Pakistan, he sustained bullet injuries, forcing him to give up swimming. Later, Petkar decided to play sports as a specially-abled athlete.
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