The sports films genre is one of the most challenging subjects for filmmakers to choose and execute. While some sports films like Ashwani dedicated themselves to the legendary sports athletes, there are other films which had sports as a strong backdrop in the midst of the main storyline. We have often seen the hero being a sports star or just try out a sport such as Mahesh Babu in Okkadu and Venkatesh in Vasantham. Natural Star Nani showcased himself as a kabaddi player in Bheemili Kabaddi Jattu which was much appreciated as well.

However, films based on sports have evolved much impressively with years to come. The sports were no longer seen as just a glamorous profession but also as a place which has a lot of challenges. Indraganti Mohana Krishna made Golkonda High School which emphasized on the importance of physical education in schools. Sumanth has excelled in the role of a cricket coach which inspired much of the audience. Prakash Raj’s Dhoni also revolved much around Cricket and how a father realizes his son (Akash Puri)’s passion towards the sport. Weaving family values over a sport was quite much appreciated by the Telugu audience.

But off late, much of the movies are appreciating this trend once again and also bringing in female leads to play in the role of a sportsperson. Interestingly, the three films this year- namely Majili, Jersey and now Dear Comrade revolve around Cricket. The filmmakers are also breaking stereotypes by showcasing women playing a gentleman sport like Cricket. It was nice to watch Rashmika Mandanna strike sixes and boundaries in Vijay Deverakonda’s latest release Dear Comrade!

The lane down from now should be much more films on not just Cricket but also on other sports which need the attention of the majority of the audience.