'Chandu Champion': How Kartik Aaryan turned into Murlikant Petkar

New Delhi,UPDATED: Jun 8, 2024 09:58 IST

Kartik Aaryan had to undergo a massive transformation to step into Paralympic gold medalist Murlikant Petkar's shoes in Kabir Khan's directorial, 'Chandu Champion'. His journey from 39 percent body fat to a meagre 7 per cent was no easy ride. The actor posted a before and after photo of his drastic transformation.

Kartik Aaryan's weight loss journey for 'Chandu Champion' is too inspiring. The actor, in his post, mentioned how he went from being an 'insomniac' to a 'fitness enthusiast' for the film. He wrote, "From 39 % body fat to 7 % body fat !! From being an ‘insomniac’ to turning into a ‘fitness enthusiast’, it’s surely a journey of one and half years to remember for me (sic)."

He added, "The life of the living legend Mr Murlikant Petkar, not only made me a stronger human being but also, further installed the belief that if you can dream it, then you can achieve it... nothing is impossible. Pehle mummy kehti thi, ‘beta gym jao’ lekin aaj kal haalaat aise hain ki unhe call karke bolna padta hai, ‘beta gym se vapas aa jao' (Earlier, my mom used to say, 'Son, go to the gym,' but these days, she calls me and asks me to come back from the gym)."

Here is the photo:

'Chandu Champion' co-producer and director Kabir Khan spoke to IndiaToday.in about Kartik Aaryan's massive transformation. When asked how closely he collaborated with Kartik on this transformation, Kabir Khan said, "On a minute-to-minute basis, because it was not an easy transformation. It was not an easy journey to undertake. I had to put in a huge team of physical trainers, physiotherapists, dietitians, boxing coaches, swimming coaches, and wrestling coaches. It was a massive team. And literally, for 1.5 years, Karthik has lived the life of an athlete. He would wake up early in the morning, go to the gym, have his food, and then go for a boxing session. Then come back and sleep. We even had to monitor his sleep."

Kabir Khan also spoke about how Kartik, who was an insomniac before, now sleeps for eight hours, thanks to 'Chandu Champion'. "When I met him, he was an insomniac and used to sleep for four hours. I told Kartik 'For this journey, if you don't sleep for eight hours minimum, there's no point in undertaking this journey.' He (Kartik) says, ‘For this character, my life became different’. Today he's somebody who sleeps for eight hours, looks at everything he eats, has a very fit lifestyle," he said.

'Chandu Champion' releases on June 14.