Ammy Virk, who will be seen in sports drama 83, says the film is sure to strike a chord with a cricket-loving nation

Sheetal

Many have been moved to tears after just watching the trailer of 83, the much-awaited film, which stars two Punjabi actor-singers Ammy Virk and Harrdy Sandhu. Directed by Kabir Khan, Ranveer Singh plays the lead role in the film, which also stars Deepika Padukone, Pankaj Tripathi, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Jiiva, Saqib Salim and Sahil Khattar.

Ammy Virk, who mistakenly calls 83 his debut film, is forgetful that officially Bellbottom is his first project. Apparently, the actor signed 83 much before Bellbottom and says he will himself be watching the film after a long delay of almost two years because of the pandemic.

Lucky mascot

Ammy, who will be playing the lucky charm of 83 team, medium pace bowler Balwinder Singh Sandhu, says, “While we got to meet all the living legends of 1983 World Cup win, it was Ballu ji who I got to know closely. In fact, he was our team coach throughout the shooting days where we were together for almost six months. We have great memories from our time together with all the real and reel players. I have all the BTS moments with me and will share it soon after the film is released this month.”

83’s trailer, which was posted two days ago and was trending at number one till Thursday evening, has already grossed 56 million views, one million likes and not a single dislike!

Great memories

The Qismat actor believes that cricket fans in India are the same everywhere in the country. He adds, “We all have made excuses not to go to school when there was a cricket match, and we all have paddled our cycle faster to reach home in the minimum time possible to watch India bat.” Joking about his 83 memories, he says, “I was not even planned as a baby when this epic moment was written down in history, but yes like everybody we have memories of seeing the famous Kapil Dev’s picture with a trophy.

Support youngsters

Singer AP Dhillon is performing in Mohali soon but to those who criticise AP for lip-syncing, Ammy says, “Western music is not easy to sing live, but there are many songs that can be sung on dhol beats. So, we should support the artistes who are bringing name and fame to Punjabi culture. When Sharry Mann came with Yaar Anmulle, we applauded him; same happened when Karan Aujla, Sidhu Moosewala changed the game of music, the same goes for AP Dhillon and other new artistes with different beats and music. I was sitting in a club overseas where Brown Munde was being played, I felt proud that Punjabi music is being appreciated by the global audience.”

Ammy reveals that he will release his song in the first month of 2022 where he has collaborated with Divine. The singer is currently hooked to his latest number, Dabde Ni, and will be experimenting a lot in music apart from the films in the coming year.

Ranveer is Unmatchable

“As known to all, Ranveer’s energy is unmatched. Even a hardcore Punjabi like me would be looking for coffee if sleep-deprived and working, but he is just a guy from another planet! Having said that, the best part about him is that he treats everyone equally and I am not talking about us co-stars, the 11 players in the film 83, but the technicians as well as spot-boys. His temperament doesn’t change with social status, clothes or the work you do. He is our unmatched hero of 83. Only he could pull off a Kapil Dev.” — Ammy Virk