Saina (film)
Saina is a 2021 Indian Hindi-language biographical sports film directed by Amole Gupte and produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Sujay Jairaj and Rashesh Shah under the banner of T-Series and Front Foot Pictures. Based on the life of badminton player Saina Nehwal, the film stars Parineeti Chopra as Nehwal. The film was initially set to release in September 2020, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India. It was theatrically released on 2 March 2021. Production. Development. Saina Nehwal revealing the details of the film, on her Twitter account announced the film on  26 April 2017. Earlier, Shraddha Kapoor was signed to play Nehwal's role, and she even started filming in September 2018 after training, but later she opted out of the film due to health issues. On 15 March 2019, it was confirmed by T-Series head honcho Bhushan Kumar that Shraddha Kapoor will not be playing the role of Nehwal. In a statement they said, "Due to circumstances beyond her control, the actress kept giving other films priority over the national badminton champion’s biopic, so the makers have decided to go ahead with Chopra." In June, Manav Kaul was  finalized to play the role of Pullela Gopichand who is Nehwal's coach. Training. From mid June, Chopra was training herself in playing badminton and practicing the stances of Nehwal. As many as 12 courts were recreated to represent international venues where Saina Nehwal has played. Reception. The film received mixed reviews from critics. Yogesh Mishra of Bollywood Town says "Movie beautifully talks about the success saga of a middle-class girl from Haryana". Soundtrack. The soundtrack is composed by Amaal Mallik, produced, arranged & co-written by Meghdeep Bose with lyrics by Manoj Muntashir and Kunaal Vermaa. Saina (film) Saina