In 2007 a sports drama hit theatres that not only won hearts but also rewrote how India saw hockey. Chak De! India told the gritty emotional journey of a women’s hockey team their struggles their wins and the unbreakable bond that made them champions. The movie didn’t just score at the box office; it scored in real life too. Hockey sales in the country shot up by 30% after its release. The film’s title track became a national mood booster. From cricket stadiums to Olympic podiums no celebration of victory felt complete without that song playing in the background. Film inspired from? The story took inspiration from the life of former hockey player Mir Ranjan Negi. In the film Shah Rukh Khan played the role of a coach trying to redeem his lost pride — a part he agreed to take on almost instantly. The reason? In college SRK himself had been a hockey player. Authenticity was the heartbeat of the project. The actresses cast as hockey players were put through intense three-to-four-month training camps so that their moves didn’t look fake on screen. And the hard work paid off — audiences felt like they were watching a real team not actors pretending to play. Was Shah Rukh Khan the first choice for the film? Surprisingly no. According to IMDB the role was first offered to Salman Khan. Why talks with him didn’t work out remains unclear. But fate had other plans — and those plans involved Shah Rukh Khan delivering one of his most powerful performances. The result? Shah Rukh Khan walked away with his seventh Best Actor award and the film became a cultural landmark. Chak De Indias Box Office Collection Produced on a budget of Rs 200 million Chak De! India stormed the box office earning a whopping Rs 1.01 billion (US$26.36 million) worldwide. Released on August 10 2007 it became the third highest-grossing Hindi film of the year proof that audiences were ready to embrace stories beyond typical Bollywood romance. Even after more than a decade the movie’s impact hasn’t faded. It’s not just a film it’s a reminder of the magic that happens when sports storytelling and the right star come together. And to think it almost wasn’t an SRK film at all.