Contrary to reports, Reema Kagti’s Akshay Kumar-starrer Gold is not a biopic of former hockey player Balbir Singh Sr but a fictional tale based on real events, producer Ritesh Sidhwani has clarified. Gold is scheduled to be released on August 15, 2018.

Singh was part of the team that won the first Olympic medal for newly independent India in 1948. The Indian team beat Great Britain 4-0 to win the gold that year.

“It is not a biopic,” Ritesh Sidhwani told PTI. “It is a completely fictional story but it is set against a real backdrop between 1933-’48 India about what the country was, the sports… About hockey. It is not based on any character.”

He added, “It talks about the era in which we achieved Independence and what happened with sports, (primarily) hockey at that time. It is not about a particular character and Akshay is not even playing (hockey in the film). He plays the manager.”

Produced by Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar’s Excel Entertainment, the film also features Amit Sadh and Mouni Roy.

Gold marks Excel Entertainment’s first association with Kumar. It is also the first sports film to be produced by the banner.