It’s been 20 years since Narain Karthikeyan made history as the first ever Indian to compete in F1. His incredible journey to the pinnacle of racing is all set to get the big screen treatment, with a Tamil language biopic in the works.
Currently being developed under the working title ‘NK 370’, the film will be directed by Mahesh Narayanan, who has helmed critically acclaimed films like Malik and Ariyippu. The screenplay will be written by Shalini Usha Devi, who won the Best Screenplay Award for Soorarai Pottru at the 2022 National Film awards.
- Tamil language biopic to be directed by Mahesh Narayanan
- Screenplay will be written by Shalini Usha Devi
New biopic based on India’s first F1 driver
Karthikeyan to work closely with filmmakers.
The success of Netflix’s Drive to Survive and the recent F1 movie point to the growing popularity of motorsport globally. The same holds true in India as well; in fact, F1’s latest Global Fan Survey shows that digital interest is translating directly into demand to attend live races, “especially in growth markets like the USA, India and Brazil”.
But F1 still remains a ruthlessly difficult championship to enter – something that makes what Karthikeyan achieved 20 years ago all the more remarkable.
It is understood that NK 370 will tell the story of how Karthikeyan reached F1 – from inheriting his love for racing from his father (a former Indian National Rally Champion) to attending the Winfield Racing School in France to making his F1 debut in 2005.
“For an Indian to get into Formula 1 is a big struggle,” Karthikeyan told Autocar India. “I hope this film inspires the young crowd, especially those whose aims are set on formula racing.”
The movie will trace Karthikeyan’s journey up the single-seater ladder, including the 2000 Macau GP, where he shattered the lap record and was en route to victory when he crashed out of the lead. Speaking to F1.com earlier this year, Karthikeyan called that crash the “biggest regret” of his life. “Because if I had won that race, I had opportunities lined up in Formula 1,” he added.
Karthikeyan then switched to Super Formula (then known as World Series by Nissan) and eventually returned to compete in the Macau GP as well. He finally got his big F1 break in 2005 when he signed with Jordan.
Quite a few of these pivotal moments will be portrayed in the upcoming biopic. Karthikeyan will be collaborating closely with the filmmakers for the various racing sequences, which will be filmed in England. Carlin Motorsport team founder Trevor Carlin, who played a key role in Karthikeyan’s career, is also expected to be involved in the filming of the project.
Dinshaw Magol
