Along with releasing in theaters on February 28, 2025, the Superboys of Melagaon are getting critical appreciation. Inspired by the life of Nasir Sheikh and other filmmakers from Malegaon, Reema Kagati-directed film stars Adarsh ​​Gaurav, VINENT Kumar Singh and Shashank Aerora. The film also inspires the 2008 documentary ‘Supermen of Malegaon’.

Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Reema Kagti, known for her work on ‘Talash’ and ‘Gold’, ‘Superboy of Malegaon’ tells the story of Nasir Sheikh, which is an autism, which leads the community-khanta, leads a budget presentations that eventually turned into full films. His hometown Malegaon became a dream factory for film projects at such ground level. The film was co-produced with Zoya Akhtar, which is known for ‘Gully Boy’ and ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’ (ZNMD).

Where is Malegaon?

Malegaon Nashik is a city in Maharashtra, located on the banks of the Girna River. It is famous for its loom industry.

Are Malegaon’s superboys inspired by a true story?

Yes, ‘Superboy of Malegaon’ is inspired by the true story of Nasir Sheikh, a self-made man. The film was written by lyricist and writer Varun Grover, who met Nasir and his colleague Farog in 2012, which was soon after the release of the documentary Superman of Malegaon. Grover has been in contact with foreog for years, and in 2019, when Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti began researching the film, Grover was asked to pen the script.

In a long note on X (East Twitter), Grover shared his first encounter with “Film Gang of Friends” from Malegaon, which made it his mission to make local films for his community. Grover talked about those who inspired the film and how he finished writing the script in 2023. Sadly, one of the major figures, Fortog, who helped inspire the film, died before it was completed.

Grover also mentioned that, like many films, ‘Superboy of Malegaon’ took almost half a decade.

I met Nasir and Purog in 2012 – just after the screening of Faiza Khan’s brilliant documentary on the Malagaon film industry. He has been in touch with foreog for years and then in 2019 Zoya Akhtar asked me if I would like to write a film on Malegaon.

I, Shoaib Nazir … pic.twitter.com/pf3eskmhlk

– Rur 🇮🇳 (@varungrover) 27 February, 2025

Who is Nasir Sheikh?

Nasir Sheikh, the person whose life is an inspiration for the film, recently shared his ideas with AFP, which adapters his story in a feature film. He described cinema as an escape from everyday struggles and highlighted Malegaon’s video parlors, where Bollywood classics are displayed on a large TV screen at a part of the cost of real cinema.

Nasir, once a struggling wedding videographer and a “unemployed cinema buff”, began making films for their community in the mid -2000s. “I decided to make a film with the crew of cheap rental cameras, innovative production hack and equally enthusiastic film fanatics,” he told AFP. He invested his savings and raised funds from friends to the funds of Bollywood and Hollywood films, such as Superman of Malegaon, where a capped superhero fights tobacco -producing tobacco.

The reaction to Nasir’s films was “incredible”. His work came to be known as “Bollywood” and he attracted international attention through ‘Superman of Melagaon’.

However, with the advent of online material platforms and epidemic, some members of Nasir’s crew began making profits through online comedy shows. In fact, many amateur writers, actors and directors began to produce income generating features through digital platforms, and one of them also broke his big Bollywood break as an assistant writer.