Film on star Odisha sprinter Dutee Chand to hit TV screens this April
Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Feb 15:
A biopic based on the life and times of Odisha’s sprint queen Dutee Chand will hit drawing rooms this April. A crew of American TV channel Home Box Office Inc. (HBO) was engaged in shootings in Kerala at the just concluded 35th National Games to capture her sporting life, which has been marred with controversy.
The film makers will document the ace runner’s ordeal following the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) hyperandogenism ruling.
The four-member crew has researched extensively on Dutee’s persona as a daughter and a sister, apart from her explots as a sportsperson. The 19-year-old athlete’s personal coach and senior Sports Authority of India (SAI) coach Nagapuri Ramesh was a valuable resource for the team as he had played the mentor’s role during her turbulent past post the sports body rulings.
Besides, the crew has also interviewed JJ Thomas, chief secretary of Kerala government, who was earlier the director general of SAI.
The journalists were keen on projecting the human and humble side of the athlete, who, for no reason, was prevented from taking part in two prestigious events – Commonwealth Games and Asian Games. “They also felt that jealously could be a factor in the ruling,” Ramesh was quoted as saying.
Earlier, a TV crew from Brazil had visited Hyderabad to film the rise and fall of Dutee Chand in view of the forthcoming Olympics Games at Rio de Jenario in 2016, he added.
Notably, the Odisha sprinter, barred from taking part in any competition after failing IAAF’s controversial new hyperandrogenism test, got a partial reprieve in December last year when the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS), where she had filed an appeal in September last year, allowed her to participate in national events in its provisional ruling.
After the partial relief, the teen sprinter breached the meet record in women’s 100m event clocking 11.76 sec at the recently concluded National Games.
Born on 3 February 1996 to Chakradhar Chand and Akhuji Chand of Gopalpur in Odisha’s Jajpur district, Dutee is among four daughters born to the poor weaver couple.
Comments are closed.