Highly inspired by the Bollywood block buster Chak De! India, the Federation Internationale de Hockey (FIH), the global governing sport of the body, is in the process of naming their 2010 World Cup campaign after the film.
“Chak De is really a great film, inspiring and highly successful. Indian audiences have received the film overwhelmingly and we are thinking of utilizing the opportunity it provides for us, for the 2010 Men’s World Cup. In fact we will name our campaign suitably after the film”, said Els van Breda Vriesman, the FIH President speaking to s2h on the sidelines of the Official dinner the Malaysian Hockey Federation hosted for all the visiting teams and officials at the Palace of the Golden Horses Hotel on Tuesday.
She further informed that the super coach-actor of the film Shah Ruk Khan will be roped in for the campaign. On informed about the high cost involved of the superstar, she is confident those things could be worked out: ‘even he may opt to co-operate with us in the interest of the sport. He is assertive in the film, and very attractive too”.
Els seems to have liked the film profoundly, which she understood with the Dutch sub-titles, and could recollect every dialogue. She told the dialogue involving Kabir Khan, the coach, calling the girls ‘out’ when they mention labels of their State or Institution and take the players ‘in’ when they take the name of India, the best part of the film. “Really Bollywood makes good sense. This is really a very very good film, picturized in a grand way. But I don’t think any real time player is involved, as I know many of the current Indian women hockey team members”.
Later speaking before the dinner at the ballroom, she informed that a new internatinal tournament will be held in Pakistan. Turning towards the visiting High Commissioner of Pakistan, she said:”We deeply regret we had to move the Champions Trophy from Lahore”.