IPL turns 15: 83 producer to make a film based on the franchise tournament

Inside Edge takes place in a fictional T20 cricket competition modelled after the Indian Premier League (IPL). Truth, on the other hand, is stranger than fiction. So it was only a matter of time until the IPL, with its dizzying highs, sinking lows, and a plethora of issues was made into a film. As the IPL, which was formed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), approaches its 15th year, Vishnu Vardhan Induri, the producer of Thalaivii (2021) and 83 (2021), is likely to launch a film based on the franchise tournament. The film will be based on Boria Majumdar's upcoming book, Maverick Commissioner: The IPL-Lalit Modi Saga.

The film, like its source material, will focus as much on Lalit Modi, the league's creator, as it will on the tournament's path. The source told Mid Day that it will start right from 2007 when the IPL was launched and the teams were formed. Some cricketers became famous overnight as the competition progressed. The league brought cricket and Bollywood together, with celebrities owning teams like the Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings.

The biggest of the many issues was Modi's suspension in 2010 for alleged financial irregularities, which was followed by the BCCI banning him for life in 2013 for "indiscipline and misconduct." The source went on to say that the IPL became a big event that featured a heady combination of sports stars, glamour, and commercial agreements worth crores of rupees. Its founder and commissioner were at the centre of it all. The producers are in talks with a big name to play Lalit Modi, the protagonist of the story.

After 83, Induri's second cricket offering is the book-to-screen adaption. He told the tabloid that they were making a feature film out of Maverick Commissioner. Within the next three weeks, the book will be available. They are putting the finishing touches on the story, director, and cast.

Induri goes on to say that the film would cover all of the major events of the T20 league. The book offers a fascinating tale of how the world's largest cricketing mela came to be, as well as insights into the man behind the show. The spirit of the IPL's establishment, Lalit Modi's journey in making it, and his exit from it, will be the film's message.