Piara Ram Sondhi, who was the wrestling coach during 2010 Commonwealth Games and 2008 Beijing Games is considering legal action against the film, over the negative portrayal of the coach in the film.
Aamir Khan's 'Dangal' has garnered a lot of critical and commercial acclaim since its release. According to reports, 'Dangal' has also minted approximately over 150 crores within five days of its release, and has recorded the second-highest opening of the year after Salman's 'Sultan'.
While the film did claim that all the characters shown in the film are fictional and not inspired by real-life, the film sure seems to have ruffled some feathers. Piara Ram Sondhi, who was the wrestling coach during 2010 Commonwealth Games and 2008 Beijing Games is considering taking legal action against the film, over the negative portrayal of the coach in the film.
Sondhi claimed that the character of the coach, PR Kadam, which was the only negative character, is wrongly portrayed. Talking to Mail Today, Sondhi said that he was extremely shocked by the last scene of the movie. He said, "Mahavirji is an old friend of mine. I have a very close relation with the Phogat family. I have not seen the film yet, but the facts told to me by my students highlight things that I didn't do. Just to spice things up you can't defame me. I know the name isn't the same, but it's quite evident that I am the person being referred to here."
Sondhi said that when he met Aamir during the shooting in Ludhiana, the actor did not reveal that his character will be portrayed in such a manner. "Kripa Shankar Bishnoi, who trained Aamir for Dangal, has been my student. When we all met, Aamir asked me general questions about wrestling, but not once did he discuss anything about the film. He should have told me how they were planning to portray the coach's character," he said.
Expressing his disappointment Sondhi said, "They have changed the name to PR Kadam in the film, but somewhere the character is loosely based on my life. There were four other coaches, who were also involved [in the training], but they haven't been shown in the film at all. Distortion of facts has hurt my reputation. Once I watch the film, I will speak to the wrestling federation. I also plan to meet Aamir and seek an explanation."
Sondhi has cut off all the ties with the Phogat family over the treatment meted out. He said, "I treated Geeta as my own daughter. I am shocked that the no one from the Phogat family protested against the treatment given to my character. His two daughters have trained under me for more than three years and not once did he interfere. I don't understand the need to show the character as such a taskmaster. I have decided to cut all ties with them for the good."
Sondhi is now planning to reach out to Aamir Khan and seek justification for Kadam's negative character. If the actor fails to justify the same, he is contemplating taking the producers to the court.