What does it truly take for actors to transform for sports biopics?

Time of India

28-04-2025

Playing any character on the big screen comes with its own set of challenges. However, the level of difficulty rises significantly when it comes to a biopic, especially one based on a sports person. It's not just about mimicking their moves or donning their sports attire; there's much more to it than meets the eye. To do complete justice to the role, an actor must understand their struggles, embody their spirit, and undergo both physical and mental transformation.
The best part is that, in today's era of cinematic marvels, Bollywood has consistently delivered some iconic sports biopics. From Priyanka Chopra's
Mary Kom
to Farhan Akhtar's Bhaag
Milkha Bhaag
and Aamir Khan's Dangal, each of these films blurred the line between reel and real. And to create such cinematic spectacles, the actors had to undergo a complete 360-degree transformation.
The physical transformation, which is more than just a makeover
There have not been one but several examples where actors have completely transformed themselves physically to portray a sports icon. And in their transformation journey, they had to undergo intense training. The latest example of the same is Kartik Aaryan from 'Chandu Champion.'
The 'Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety' fame star, known for his chocolate boy image, had to shed down to 7% body fat and sculpt a body befitting an Olympic gold medalist. 'Building this body was a work of a lot of patience, and it took really long time. I had never imagined a film like this, a genre like this, and this is something I've never attempted,' Kartik told ETimes in an interview.
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Undo
Similarly, when Priyanka Chopra portrayed
Mary
Kom, she encountered the enormous challenge of embodying the physicality of a global boxing champion. She not only went through rigorous boxing training but also needed to effectively showcase the speed, strength, and endurance of an experienced boxer — a task that demanded months of tireless practice and mental fortitude.
Chandu Champion - Official Trailer
Farhan Akhtar's portrayal of the Flying Sikh in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag remains one of the most celebrated examples of an actor's physical transformation. The actor was never fat per se, but 'The idea was to get an athletic body, not the bulky Ghajini-type,' said trainer Sameer Jaura.
Akhtar had two looks in the film, one of a bulky slider and the other was of a lean runner. 'To bulk up, I had to gain an additional eight kilos. And later, I lost 10 kilos to weigh 64kg for the second look,' he said.
The actor did a mix of athletic training routine, mixed with functional and weight training, and achieved a physique without the use of any steroids. He explained, 'Every day, I'd work on my legs, back, then chest, shoulders, biceps, and triceps. This was a 12-week programme. As the weights kept getting heavier, the reps decreased. After three months, I moved to Tabata, a high-intensity workout in which I had to pull off maximum repetitions in a given period. We combined two muscle groups every day – chest-biceps, back-triceps, and shoulders-legs. I did eight-10 sets (each lasting 90 seconds) per body part.'
'In the last six months, when I was supposed to slim down, I moved to endurance training with weights. We combined two muscle groups in a day and did 15 sets of 100 reps per body part. The weights remained consistent throughout all sets. I finished training in December 2012. I was left with just 5% body fat,' he added.
And this transformation also takes a toll. When Diljit Dosanjh was getting ready for '
Soorma
,' the biopic on Hockey Player Sandeep Singh, he unfortunately had to face a few repercussions of intense training as well.
Bhaag Milkha Bhaag: Official trailer
According to PTI, the actor shared, 'The role was extremely draining with so much intense training. Physically, it was very tough. I had a lot of problems post-shooting the film. When I was shooting, I had stopped consuming sugar, I used to eat salt very little".
However, there were these side effects as the actor had limited time to get into the desired shape. 'Because we wanted the physique of an athlete in a very short time, I pushed my body a lot to achieve that result. When the film got over and I started eating normally, I got swelling on my hands, face, and all over my body. There was a reaction. When you reduce the intake of salt, the water in your body doesn't stay, and you get cramps," he said.
Training like an athlete
As aforementioned, for a sports biopic, the actors need to understand the mentality of the sports icon as well. Not just that, they need to understand the sport and go through a proper athletic training.
An example of the same was seen in 'Dangal,' where the stakes were significantly higher. Aamir Khan, before cutting down the extra fat, had to gain nearly 30 kilos to embody the older version of Mahavir Singh Phogat. Later, he lost weight to depict his younger, fitter self.
However, it wasn't just about Aamir; newcomers Fatima Sana Shaikh and Sanya Malhotra, who portrayed Geeta and Babita Phogat, had no prior experience in wrestling. They spent months training with professional wrestlers, following intense workout routines, mastering real wrestling techniques, and even facing off against actual wrestlers during the filming process. This rigorous preparation ensured that when viewers watched 'Dangal,' it felt genuine rather than like actors merely pretending to wrestle.
The emotional tolls and triumphs
The emotional journey of preparing for a sports biopic is just as exhausting as the physical one. Priyanka Chopra admitted that preparing for Mary Kom pushed her to emotional extremes.
Taking to her social media handle, the actress shared, 'Playing #MaryKom was not what I expected at all. The weight of telling the story of a living, national icon put a load on me that I hadn't shouldered before. It was surreal in many ways.
She was a world champion sportswoman who was and is still competing and is on top of her game. It was an honour but also a huge responsibility for me as an actor.
She continued, "It was both physically and emotionally demanding requiring an extreme amount of training to not just get into the physical shape but to learn her particular style of boxing... she is left handed and I'm right. So I had to learn to box as a south paw which was a challenge. It's an experience I will never forget. An amazing team and an equally supportive Mary herself saw me through it all.'
In conclusion
Behind every successful sports biopic lies an actor's untold story of transformation — an unrelenting journey of physical hardship, emotional upheaval, and spiritual growth. As viewers, we are often captivated by the final performance, but rarely do we comprehend the sheer magnitude of preparation it demands.