Sidharth Malhotra with Vishal Batra. (courtesy: kiaraaliaadvani)
Highlights
- Sidharth plays Captain Vikram Batra in 'Shershaah'
- "We found an actor who is very seasoned," Vishal Batra said
- "When I met you for the first time, you were very charming," he added
The recently-released film Shershaah is based on the life of Captain Vikram Batra, who died in the Kargil War and was honoured with the Param Vir Chakra posthumously. Sidharth Malhotra, who plays Captain Vikram Batra in the film, spoke to the Kargil hero's brother Vishal Batra. During the interaction, Vishal Batra revealed what he thought of Sidharth's performance in the film and said, "Let me very candidly share with you, when I met you for the first time, you were very charming. While it was during the transition when we started making the movie, underneath your charming personality, we found an actor who is very seasoned and at that point of time, we decided that you are the right choice for getting Vikram on the screen. I think the way you got into the complete nitty-gritty and details of him as an individual is really worth appreciating."
Speaking of the scene that had a lasting impact on Vishal Batra, he told Sidharth, "One scene which has stayed in my mind and I would specifically mention that scene - you must remember when Vikram was posted in Sopore and you wanted to sip a cup of tea and you go to a vendor and he has a son. The way you really speak about what the son is doing and if he wants to study or where he wants to go in life. I think Vikram had the same character. Vikram was a loving and very caring guy. I think that is very beautiful and what I liked about the movie."
Seeing Sidharth Malhotra in the uniform, reminded Vishal of his brother. "Of course, I had all those emotions running in my body and I could sense that Vikram is standing in front of me," he said. Later, he also said, "Whenever I now think of Vikram and I see the man in uniform, because I couldn't see Vikram during the last combat, so the last image now I have is you," he said.
Sidharth's Shershaah co-star Kiara Advani shared the video on Instagram and she wrote: "A heartfelt conversation between the reel Captain Vikram Batra and real Vishal Batra on the journey of Shershaah. Eternally grateful for the support of the Batra family."
Shershaah, directed by Vishnu Varadhan and produced by Karan Johar's Dharma Productions, released on August 12 on Prime Video. In the film, Kiara Advani plays the role of Captain Vikram Batra's fiancée Dimple Cheema.