INTERVIEW: Sidharth Malhotra on Shershaah & the digital world: ‘It wouldn’t have disappointed at Box Office’

In a candid chat with Pinkvilla, Sidharth Malhotra opens up about bringing Karan Johar on board the Captain Vikram Batra biopic, his script selection and plans of making a digital debut. Details.

Himesh Mankad
Written by Himesh Mankad , Journalist
Updated on Aug 19, 2021 | 10:53 AM IST | 544.7K
INTERVIEW: Sidharth Malhotra on Shershaah & the digital world: ‘It wouldn’t have disappointed at Box Office’
INTERVIEW: Sidharth Malhotra on Shershaah & the digital world: ‘It wouldn’t have disappointed at Box Office’

The recently released Captain Vikram Batra biopic, Shershaah, has won ample of appreciation for Sidharth Malhotra. In the midst of multiple below par films that premiered on the digital world, Shershaah is among the rare films that comes across as an honest attempt to entertain and engage the audience. “I am so happy to hear that and this is the best reaction that we could get for a film like Shershaah,” says an ecstatic Sid.

For those unaware, Sid has been the pioneer in getting the film made as he was on board the biopic much before the involvement of Dharma Productions or for that matter, even the director, Vishnuvardhan. “The project came to me when I was shooting for A Gentleman, around 5 years back. Shabbir Boxwala had come to me with Captain Vikram Batra’s family. I met his father, mother, twin brother and even visited their house multiple times. A completely different production house was involved back then and we worked for about a year and half on the script with a different team. However, things were not culminating into something I was satisfied with,” Sid informs.

He adds, “It was very challenging to put everything in just two hours. I remember taking permission from Captain Vikram Batra’s twin brother, Vishal Batra that if you allow me, I would love to get this film made in the best possible way and would want to take it to Dharma Productions because they bring in a sense of quality. At that time, Dharma had not signed any biopic and this snowballed into an interesting take by getting Sandeep Srivastava as the writer and through him, we got Vishnuvardhan ji as the director.” Sid describes this as “a long gruesome journey.” He smiles, “But luckily, I have been the constant. I was passionate about the story to be told to youth and it’s an emotional moment for me to get this sort of love and response. It’s the most valuable thing that I own today and this will motivate me for years to come.”

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A completely different production house was involved back then and we worked for about a year and half on the script with a different team. However, things were not culminating into something I was satisfied with

Sidharth Malhotra

The challenge for the Shershaah team was to get the script right. “There is so much in his life that’s memorable – right from commando training to his friends and the table tennis championship. We didn’t have the room to enter the story initially but full credit to Sandeep and Vishnu to find a concise version of the story that highlights every aspect of his personality.” Ever since the film’s release on August 12, there has been chatter about how it was meant to be consumed on the big screen. The trade predicted Shershaah to become Sid’s biggest grosser till date had it released in the cinema halls. 

Is he disappointed that a film as important as Shershaah premiered on the digital world? “Absolutely. After looking at the love and response from the audience, I know for sure that this would not have disappointed at the box-office. That being said, we were ready last July and the film was shot keeping the big screen in mind. But this is the new norm. We may not have full capacity of screens this year and that wouldn’t do justice to a film of this scale. Hence, we decided to bring it to the small screen at everyone’s home,” Sidharth responds.

After Marjaavaan, there has been a buzz in the industry that Sid is more inclined towards the intense action space and is looking to position himself as an action hero. Sid answers, “I have never let people mold me in one form and have always tried to do different buts. I wouldn’t say that this is one zone I want to concentrate on. In-fact, I would like to do films which are inspirational, closer to reality and possibly make you learn something. As a movie goer, I love action thrillers but as an actor, I want to do everything - action, romance, slice of life, inspiration films. Shershaah has taught me to find the right essence of a script."

As a movie goer, I love action thrillers but as an actor, I want to do everything - action, romance, slice of life, inspiration films. Shershaah has taught me to find the right essence of a script.

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Sidharth Malhotra

With actors like Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Hrithik Roshan among others contemplating on making a digital debut, is Sid open to acting in a web series? He concludes, “Why not? We have seen so much content in the digital space and Shershaah is in a way my OTT debut. If I find a character that’s interesting, which I don’t get to do in a feature film, I would be excited to take that up for the digital world.”

Sid is currently shooting for the spy thriller, Mission Majnu and Indra Kumar’s slice of life comedy, Thank God.

ALSO READ: Akshay Kumar’s Bell Bottom to release on Thursday – Cinema Hall reopening status in key markets of India

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