Spoiler alert! Please do not read the following plot summary if you have not seen the film.
Adi Tomar (Madhavan) had a dream: to win the boxing gold for India. Instead he languished in a nightmare for a decade: his gloves were spiked during an all-important match, blinding him in the arena, and handing the match to his undeserving opponent—a mediocre boxer but a political powerhouse. The culprit was his own coach, Dev Khatri (Zakir).
Shattered by his loss, and disillusioned by the state of Indian boxing, Adi turned to a life of cynical self-destruction: booze, brothels and bar-fights. Until loyal friends somehow bring him back to boxing, this time as the coach of the lowly rated Indian women’s boxing team. His outspoken honesty sends jitters through his old adversaries, and he is soon transferred to Chennai—the Siberia of Indian boxing.
But Adi continues to dream: this time for a free-spirited, fiery young woman from the fishing community: Madhi (Ritika). She has no training, but tons of raw talent. Adi spots in her a champion that could bring India the gold that he was robbed off. All he needs is to train her.
But that is the last thing she wants. She loves to pick fights outside the arena, but has no interest in entering it. Having seen her elder sister Lakshmi’s struggles in the field of women’s boxing she is viscerally averse to it. That world is synonymous for her with nepotism, with lascivious men with no interest in boxing and all interest in exploiting the needy female boxers.
Adi must first earn her trust, then tame her impetuosity, and finally make her dream… all this in just nine months before the world championship. And so begins an uneasy partnership between a man who loves his sport and a girl who loves her freedom. Rigor and rebellion, structure and free spirit collide. It is the beginning of a beautiful friendship… and a journey towards an impossible dream.
TRIVIA
1. Ritika and Mumtaz are both professional boxers. Ritika had to unlearn her punching skills to convincingly play Maddy’s pupil.
2. Madhavan took a couple of years’ break from acting to bulk and beef up for his role. Interestingly, during that time he was also asked if he was acting in Mary Kom, but he clarified that he was doing another movie on boxing.
3. Reportedly, Shilpa Shetty, a good friend of Maddy, became his dietician to help him bulk up for the role.
4. Rajkumar Hirani was roped in by Maddy to co-produce the Hindi version after a producer reportedly dumped them midway.
5. During the last week of shooting, Maddy suffered an injury. But he continued through the pain to finish the film.
6. To create the effect of having a lisp most boxers have from injuries, Madhavan wore metal braces inside his teeth.
7. During the Censor screening, Hirani was worried if any scene would be cut. He was also apprehensive of the word ‘Saala’ in the title. He was relieved when the film got U/A certificate with no cuts.
8. Legendary athlete Milkha Singh was so pleased that Hirani is associated with the film that he invited the film’s team to his home in Chandigarh recently.
9. The film was simultaneously shot in Hindi and Tamil. In Tamil, it is called 'Irudhi Suttru.'
10. Leading lady of the film, Ritika Singh, is a professional boxer in real life too.
Thoroughly enjoyed Sala khadoos. @ActorMadhavan u were a class apart. Lovely performances. Highly recommended watch.
— murali (@realactivex) January 30, 2016
#SalaKhadoos @ActorMadhavan ..outstanding @ritika_offl what a superb entry to Bollywood. .
Blockbuster movie of 2016
— Jithin Chand Echarot (@Jchand) January 30, 2016
Watched #Salakhadoos today!! Was in tears at times. A must must watch movie .. @ActorMadhavan & @ritika_offl were simply amazing !!! Thanks
— Temsutula Imsong (@temsutulaimsong) January 29, 2016
I thought India didn't know how to make sport films but #SaalaKhadoos proves to wrong. It's at par with movies like Chakde India! Superb!!
— Rahul Nanda (@rahulnanda86) January 31, 2016
#SaalaKhadoos I felt like boxing several times!! What a fighter... N yep I'm a fan of @ActorMadhavan after watching this movie😍!!!
— Elli Avram (@ElliAvram) January 29, 2016
Just watched #SaalaKhadoos. An Honest, Engrossing, Superbly acted gem of a film.
Way to go producers @rajkumarhirani & @actormadhavan 👍🏽👍🏽👏🏽
— Jaaved Jaaferi (@jaavedjaaferi) January 26, 2016 - What is the release date of 'Saala Khadoos'?
Release date of R. Madhavan and Ritika Singh starrer 'Saala Khadoos' is 2016-01-29. - Who are the actors in 'Saala Khadoos'?
'Saala Khadoos' star cast includes R. Madhavan, Ritika Singh, Mumtaz Sorcar and Nassar. - Who is the director of 'Saala Khadoos'?
'Saala Khadoos' is directed by Sudha K. Prasad. - What is Genre of 'Saala Khadoos'?
'Saala Khadoos' belongs to 'Sport' genre. - In Which Languages is 'Saala Khadoos' releasing?
'Saala Khadoos' is releasing in Hindi.