Make sports a part of school curriculum, urges Ranbir Kapoor

New Delhi, March 15 (IANS) It's time to play, says Bollywood heartthrob Ranbir Kapoor who has joined a campaign to urge school authorities to make sports a part of the curriculum as he feels this will help in producing good sportsmen.

'There's a need to maintain a balance between education and sports. Sports is something that instills passion, discipline and motivation. Making it a part of the school curriculum would certainly help make people fit and make good sportspersons,' Ranbir, 28, said Tuesday.

The actor was in the capital to participate in NDTV's new campaign 'NDTV-Nirmal Lifestyle Marks for Sports' along with ace shooter Gagan Narang, billards champion Pankaj Advani, Indian football captain Bhaichung Bhutia, boxing champion Vijender Singh and former cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi.

Ranbir is the brand ambassador of the campaign and to mark the event, he entered the hall at the Taj Palace Hotel on a bicycle.

'I have seen the kind of discipline that athletes abroad follow and if the same is instilled in our sportspersons, they would be able to beat anyone in the world,' said the actor, who loves playing football and basketball.

He also took a jab at Vijender, who has many fans in the Hindi film industry, saying: 'I am scared of Vijender. He can indeed give me a run for my money.'