I want my biopic to inspire young girls to take up sport even when the odds are against them: Karnam Malleswari

India’s sports heroes are often forgotten — unless they’re cricketers,” reckons Karnam Malleswari, the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal. The bronze she won at the 2000 Sydney Olympics was a giant leap for womenkind in India — a vindication that they could be world beaters. The retired weightlifter is thrilled that her achievements are going to be immortalised on the celluloid.Telugu TV journalist-turned-filmmaker Sanjana Reddy is helming the biopic that will showcase the Andhra weightlifter’s trailblazing journey that proved our village girls have it in them to be World Champions. To be made in Hindi, the film will be dubbed in all south Indian languages. Speaking to Hyderabad Times, The FCI Chief General Manager says she just wants someone who is passionate about the sport to play her on screen.
“I leave the decision of who will play me to the filmmakers, they are the better judge. But whoever plays me in my biopic, I want them to feel passionate about weightlifting and sports in general. The emotion and effort that went into my journey must be reflected on screen,” says the 45-year-old weightlifter, who’s also a recipient of the Khel Ratna award, India’s highest sporting honour.
Malleswari hails from a small village called Voosavanipeta in Andhra Pradesh and had to fight against many caste and gender-based stereotypes before making it on to the big stage. With no proper training equipment or an adequate system, Malleswari made it to the international stage through sheer grit and passion. “Where I come from, one can’t even imagine a young girl in the ’80s to take up sport, let alone wrestling. The discrimination was severe and the struggle was monumental. I hope the biopic will inspire young girls to take up sport even when the odds are stacked against them,” says the weightlifter, who, in 2000, became the third Indian to win an Olympic medal after KD Jadhav and Leander Paes.

Malleswari, who also has four World Championships medals to her name, including two gold, says even after winning an Olympic medal and creating history, she faced a lot of hardships. In fact, for 12 years, Malleswari remained the only female Olympic medal winner for India — until Saina Nehwal and Mary Kom won medals in the 2012 London Olympics. “If a player wins an Olympic medal now, governments award huge rewards and brands fight over them and sign them up for multi-crore endorsement deals. When I won the Olympic medal, I received just `6 lakh. I was promised land by the government, but never received it. After all these years, I’m not bitter. But through my biopic, I want people, especially youngsters, to know about my journey and to understand that nothing is too difficult if you desire to represent your country. I hope we win the battle against Covid-19 soon so that this story can be told faster,” she says.
Sanjana Reddy, who will be making her directorial debut with this biopic, adds, “We want the entire country to know about Malleswari’s journey and her achievements, which is why we want to release this film in Hindi. Malleswari has agreed to train the leading lady for three months before she begins shoot. We want it to seem authentic and won’t compromise on quality.”
KARNAM’S HALL OF FAME
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – 2000 Sydney-69 kg
World Championships
Bronze medal – 1993 Melbourne -54 kg
Gold medal – 1994 Istanbul-54 kg
Gold medal – 1995 Guangzhou-54 kg
Bronze medal – 1996 Guangzhou-54 kg
Asian Games
Silver medal
1994 Hiroshima-54 kg
Silver medal
1998 Bangkok-63 kg