Neha Dhupia, Adil Hussain Set for Ali El Arabi’s Qatar World Cup Drama ‘Blue 52’ (EXCLUSIVE)
variety.comNick Vivarelli International Correspondent Neha Dhupia (“A Thursday”) and Adil Hussain (“Life of Pi”) will star in Egyptian director Ali El Arabi‘s upcoming drama “Blue 52,” about a young Indian soccer fan’s journey as a migrant worker to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
El Arabi’s “Blue 52” chronicles the true tale of a young man named Ashish, who is a fervent soccer fan. Realizing that he can’t afford travel and ticket costs to attend 2022 World Cup where he wants to meet his childhood idol, Argentine megastar Lionel Messi, he decides to apply for a job as a stadium worker in Qatar.
Production has now wrapped on “Blue 52,” which was initially meant to be a doc. The project has become a scripted feature, marking the feature film debut of El Arabi, who made a splash at virtual Sundance in 2021 with doc “Captains of Zaatari,” about the soccer dreams of young Syrian refugees.
Dhupia and Hussain play Ashish’s mother and father, respectively, who live on an island in the Indian state of Kerala where Ashish (Yadav Shashidhar) has a sheltered existence.
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