Not Sidharth Malhotra, Salman Khan wanted Aayush Sharma as Shershaah Vikram Batra, hoped it would be his debut film

Although Sidharth Malhotra has been receiving good reviews for his performance in Shershaah, there was a time when Salman Khan envisioned Captain Vikram Batra's biopic with his brother-in-law, actor Aayush Sharma in the lead. Shershaah producer Shabbir Boxwala has revealed that the actor approached him and suggested Aayush's name.

In a recent interview, Shabbir Boxwala revealed that Salman Khan hoped that the patriotic film would be Aayush Sharma's red carpet to Bollywood. However, the producer had already pitched Sidharth Malhotra's name to Vikram Batra's family.

"Salman approached me at a stage when I was in talks with Junglee Pictures. He wanted Shershaah to be Aayush’s [Sharma] debut film, and wanted to partner with me on it," he told Mid-Day. However, the family 'unanimously seconded' on the idea of Sidharth playing the Param Vir Chakra awardee by then and a meeting between the actor and the family was already arranged.

“It would have been highly unethical to drop him for another actor. When Captain Batra’s family gave me the rights, it was a big moment for me. They showed immense trust in me, and I didn’t want to go wrong at any step. I explained [my predicament] to Salman, who was understanding. Aayush was sweet and sportingly said that playing a double role in his debut movie might be [a tall order],” he added.

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Aayush Sharma eventually made his debut with Loveyatri, under Salman's production house Salman Khan Films, alongside Warina Hussain. The film was panned by critics and did not perform at the box office. The actor's next film is Antim: The Final Truth, co-starring Salman.

Meanwhile, Sidharth and his Shershaah co-star Kiara Advani have been receiving positive reviews from fans and friends. Sidharth's ex-girlfriend actAlia Bhatt took to Instagram over the weekend and praised the actors and recommended the film to her fans. Shah Rukh Khan also tweeted about Shershaah, praising Sidharth's performance in the film.