Exclusive: Olympics-bound swimmer Sajan Prakash lists the films that have inspired him

A few days ago, Sajan Prakash created history by becoming the first ever Indian swimmer to qualify for the Olympics by breaching the ‘A’ standard time of international swimming. The 27-year-old Malayali swimmer rewrote his own national record, by clocking 1:56:38 seconds at the 200m men’s butterfly event at the Sette Colli Trophy in Rome, Italy. The past few years have been tough for Sajan, who in 2017 had contemplated selling his medals to raise funds for training. But his hard work and intense training has paid off and now the champion swimmer is aiming high at the Tokyo Olympics, which is set to begin on July 23.

In an exclusive chat with OTTplay, Sajan, who was the only Indian male swimmer to represent the country in 2016 Rio Olympics and is already a holder of 11 national records, lists the movies and shows that have inspired him in the past few years.

The Last Dance | Netflix

The enthralling docuseries offers insights into the lives of basketball legend Michael Jordan and his Chicago Bulls teammates as they chase their sixth championship reign in what was their most tumultuous year. Packed with pulsating retro footage and insightful commentary, The Last Dance makes for compelling viewing and why the team was one of the greatest dynasties in the sport.

Soorarai Pottru | Amazon Prime Video

Inspired by true incidents from the life of Simplify Deccan founder GR Gopinath, the Tamil superhit stars Suriya as former Air Force captain Nedumaaran Rajangam, who fights tooth and nail to achieve his dream of starting a low-cost airline carrier. Suriya soars in this inspirational drama about how Nedumaaran along with the support of his friends and family overcome a journey filled with hurdles.

Creed | iTunes

Ryan Coogler’s Creed had the dual pressure of living up to Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky movies while also branching out into a separate franchise, and it delivers knockout blows on both counts. Michael B Jordan plays Apollo Creed’s son Adonis, who seeks out Rocky to train him while the latter fights another battle of his own.

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag | Disney+ Hotstar

Inspired by the late and legendary Milkha Singh, this Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra directorial chronicles the life of the Flying Sikh – from losing his parents in his childhood during the Partition to becoming one of the finest athletes India has ever produced. Farhan Akhtar embodies Singh’s fierceness and never-say-die attitude in this inspirational biopic about the celebrated sprinter.

Avengers: Endgame | Disney+ Hotstar, YouTube, iTunes

The final instalment of Marvel’s Phase 3 had the Avengers, who had survived The Blip five years ago, travelling back in time to retrieve the Infinity Stones to give them one more chance at bringing back the people who were decimated by Thanos. The biggest superhero movie yet had everything – from fan-favourite moments such as Captain America lifting Mjolnir to heart-rending ones – to make it an experience that theatre-going fans would never forget.

Interstellar | Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hungama Play, YouTube, iTunes

After Inception and the Dark Knight trilogy, filmmaker Christopher Nolan pushed the envelope further with this sci-fi film that told the story of former NASA pilot Cooper, who is tasked with piloting a spaceship through a wormhole to find three habitable planets. Weaved into the epic mission is the story of a father and daughter that transcends space and time.