Athiya Shetty to play Kashmiri footballer, Afshan Ashiq in her next film titled ‘Hope Solo’

Athiya Shetty made her Bollywood debut in 2015 with Nikkhil Advani’s ‘Hero’ which also marked Sooraj Pancholi’s debut. Her next film, ‘Mubarakan’ had an ensemble cast including Anil Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Ratna Shah Pathak, Ileana D’Cruz and Neha Sharma and released in July 2017. Now, Athiya has bagged her third film and it is a biopic based on Kashmiri footballer, Afshan Ashiq. The film, titled ‘Hope Solo’ will be directed by Manish Harishankar.

As per a report in Mumbai Mirror, the makers approached Athiya over six months ago, but the paperwork was completed recently. A source was quoted saying, “Unlike most Indian biopics, this film will not be a success story but an emotional journey that portrays one girl’s fight against a system. It will focus on several movements like Khelo India, a national programme for the development of sports in the country, and the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme for women empowerment. Afshan’s dream has always been to be a national-level goalkeeper and represent India in international womens’ football. The film will focus on these aspirations.”

The source further added, “Athiya is presently practicing football daily to step into Afshan’s shoes and has also been training as a goalkeeper. Her prep will also include learning Kashmiri and acclimatising with the accent.”

The report also states that Gulshan Grover’s son Sanjay, who is based in the US, has brought the film rights to the life of Afshan Ashiq. She was tagged as a stone pelter when a picture of her throwing a stone at security forces during protests in Srinagar was all over the internet. (Also Read: Respect! Athiya Shetty refuses to endorse fairness products)

Sanjay has plans to take ‘Hope Solo’ to international markets. Apparently, he has also locked a deal with a production giant for the biopic. “Having studied the business of entertainment in Hollywood — the 27-year-old filmmaker has spent the last five years as Director of Special Projects with Metro Goldwyn Mayer — Sanjay is presently casting for the other prominent characters in the film,” the source said.

The director of this film, Manish has previously assisted Rajkumar Santoshi on ‘Phata Poster Nikla Hero’, ‘Ajab Prem ki Ghazab Kahani’ and Halla Bol. ‘Hope Solo’ will be written by Saiwyn Quadras who has also written ‘Neerja’ ‘Mary Kom’ and the recently release, ‘Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran’.