Top cricket stars in one film

Bangalore-560023, the sports comedy releasing this week has actors who have close association with cricket. Stars from the Celebrity Cricket League's Karnataka Bulldozers team like Karthik Jayaram (JK), Rajeev and Dhruva Sharma will be seen together in this film.It is a multi-starrer with emerging stars of Sandalwood and also includes Chandan and Chikkanna. To make things more interesting, the film is set in the backdrop of `gully' cricket. Director Pradeep Raj, who earlier made the hit Kirataka with Yash, said the film follows a format where characters drive the plot.“Many people are speculating that it is based on some other film. Except for the basic premise that it has local cricket rivalry as its backdrop, there are different characters in the film. We have some of the best new stars of Sandalwood in the film and I promise that it will be a big treat for the audience,“ Pradeep Raj said. The film also provides one more crack at big-screen stardom for JK and Chandan, arguably two of the most popular Kannada television stars.While JK moved to the small screen last year to emerge as a sensation, Chandan moved to films with a couple of films including Indrajit Lankesh's Luv U Alia. JK, too, has been making regular forays back to the big screen including the moderate horror hit Chandrika earlier this year. But big-screen success has eluded both of them so far. Pradeep Raj however is confident that his film Bangalore-560023 will be the break they deserve. “Both of them are stars in their own right. They made good films but these did not get them the deserved break. I am confident this film will give them the same amount of stardom in films that they enjoy on the small screen.“Having actors with real cricket experience has also helped the film says the director. Dhruva Sharma, who is a former captain of the deaf and dumb Indian cricket team, and Rajeev, who has emerged as the most consistent batsman for Karnataka Bulldozers in the last three seasons of CCL, are seen in prominent roles in the film. “Each character is important in the film. With the actors having played professional cricket, it was easy to get the mannerisms and body language of the sport correct in the film.It would not have been easy with actors who have no touch of the game. This was a big advantage for our film,“ says Pradeep Raj. It is to be seen if the stars who helped Karnataka Bulldozers win two titles of CCL can pull off a victory in Bangalore-560023.