What To Know About India’s First Paralympic Gold Medalist

Chandu Champion is a 2024 sports drama from Indian director Kabir Khan that depicts the life of the real Indian Paralympian, Murlikant Petkar. One of the most anticipated Bollywood movies of 2024, Chandu Champion stars Kartik Aaryan as Petkar, who in the film suffers a grievous injury from fighting in the Indian army. A lifelong athlete, Petkar does not let his injuries stop him from excelling in sports and competition after his time in the army, becoming one of India’s most successful and celebrated athletes in the country’s proud history.

A new Hindi movie for fans of the industry to enjoy and arriving in the summer, Chandu Champion features director Khan and producer Sajid Nadiadwala’s third collaboration together after Phantom in 2015 and 83 in 2021. 83 is also a biographical sports drama, about the 1983 Cricket World Cup and the Indian National team that won it, so Khan is returning to the well for this summer 2024 movie. Like 83, Chandu Champion takes from real life, but just how much it takes from the incredible true story is a question.

Chandu Champion Is Based On The Life Of Murlikant Petkar

Mulikany Petkar Is An Indian Paralympian

Murlikant Petkar is, in fact, a real person. The man who inspired the movie, Petkar, was born on November 1, 1944, in Peth Islampur region of Sangli, Maharashtra (via MurlikantPetkar). It was in his youth that Petkar found his love for athletics, excelling in a number of sports, but particularly in wrestling and hockey. On his personal website, there’s an amusing story regarding his talent that also suggests a boldness that went on to define his life.

In the story, Petkar challenged the village head’s son in a wrestling match, a big faux pas considering that when he defeated the other young man, he was essentially run out of the village, which led to him joining up with the Indian Army, specifically the Boys Battalion in Pune. It was here where he continued excelling at sports, proving himself against a larger pool of athletes and making it clear that he was not just any talented young man, but was particularly special.

Like any good sports movie based on real-life events, Chandu Champion showing Petkar’s talents at a young age makes the seeming loss of his gifts after the accident more disheartening, and the inevitable success after all the more satisfying.

Murlikant Petkar Did Fight In With The Indian Army

The Indo-Pakistani War Broke Out While Petkar Was Enlisted

While Petkar was in the Indian Army, the Indo-Pakistani War broke out. A private or jawan of the craftsman rank in the 81st Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers (EME) in the Indian Army, Petkar was responsible for the maintenance and sustenance of the equipment and inventory of the Indian Army (via The Indian Express). While that may sound like a role that would keep Petkar away from the frontlines, the fighting was intense enough that he was wounded.

Despite only being 17 weeks long, the 1965 war led to the deaths of 2862 Indian soldiers and the deaths of 5800 Pakistani soldiers (via BBC), though not all those numbers are agreed upon. Petkar was one of the many soldiers injured in the war, though unlike many other sad stories, he of course survived.

He received nine bullet wounds which resulted in physical impairments he has lived with since. He still carries one of those bullets, lodged in his spine, and he recounted the pain that led to him repursuing athletics during an 81st Corps celebration day (via The Indian Express),

“One bullet still remains lodged in my spine as a reminder. I spent 16 months in various hospitals, fighting a battle for my recovery. The doctors suggested I take up swimming to help my recovery. It soon became my passion.”

How Kabir Khan decides to portray this moment in Chandu Champion will be crucial to showing the pain Petkar had to go through on his journey to becoming one of India’s most celebrated athletes. Petkar played sports with the men in his unit, so it’s likely in the film. His allies will understand the gravity of his injuries better than anyone, which will make for some dramatic personal moments after the attack.

Petkar Won Multiple Medals At The Paralympic Games

Petkar Became One Of India’s Most Decorated Athletes

Chandu Champion does not end with Petkar pushing back the Pakistani Army. In fact, that’s not even the real conflict of the movie. Instead, it’s Petkar’s rehabilitation after his injury and success at the Paralympics that tells the real tale of his heroism. After his injury, Petkar began swimming as a way to regain his strength and recover from his brutal wounds. What Pektar realized was that just because his body changed, it did not mean he was weaker or less athletic.

There would need to be adjustments, of course. Petkar was disabled from the waist down (via The New Indian Express), but if he set his mind to it, he could keep competing in athletics as he had always loved. First, Petkar excelled in boxing, eventually representing India in international competitions. His ambitions did not stop there and Petkar participated in the 1968 Summer Paralympics in Table Tennis and Swimming. Then, four years later, in the 1972 Summer Paralympics, Petkar became the first person from India to win an individual Gold Medal at any level of Olympics.

He did so in the 50-metre freestyle with a time of 37.33 seconds. He also made the finals in javelin, precision javelin throw, and slalom in the same Olympics. Petkar’s medal tally ended up including 12 gold medals in international events, 34 golds at the national level, and 40 golds at the state level. While India had earned two Gold Medals in the Olympics before Petkar, they were in team events, for Men’s Field Hockey at the 1928 and 1948 Olympics.

Petkar is one of the country’s most decorated athletes ever and an inspiration to anyone who has suffered a tragedy that kept them from doing a beloved activity or accomplishing a personal goal. The athlete and veteran ended up receiving the Padma Shri in 2018 (via India TV News), the fourth-highest civilian award for the nation. Chandu Champion has an exceptional true story of resilience and achievement to tell.