While shooting in Kargil for Shershaah, actor Sidharth Malhotra and the team were caught in the middle of heavy winds. They were soon covered in dust; helmet, gear and all. “We kept dusting ourselves. A young jawan saw us and said, ‘Sir, it’s our own soil. Why are you dusting it off?’” His words left an impact on me. His dedication and commitment are what we tried to bring to the screen,” says the actor, who plays Kargil War martyr Captain Vikram Batra and his twin Vishal, in the recently released biopic. Almost a decade ago, Malhotra debuted in a typical Bollywoodish saccharine-sweet love story—Karan Johar’s Student of the Year (2012). As he comes full circle with another Johar product—Shershaah—there is a marked change in his career graph. Gone is the ‘Peter Pan’ look, to be replaced by the macho man with a soft core. Staying true to the character he portrays on screen, Malhotra follows Capt Batra’s motto: “Yeh dil maange more.”
The armed forces seem to have fascinated Malhotra. Earlier, he had played a soldier in Aiyaary (2018), and will also be seen as a RAW officer in the forthcoming film, Mission Majnu. “They are all different roles,” maintains the actor, adding, “Aiyaary was more about politics in the Army, here it’s a biopic of Capt Batra set in 1990, and in Mission Majnu—which is based on true events—I play a RAW agent in the 1970s during the Indo-Pak war.” While Army is familiar ground given his acting spectrum, he says that playing Capt Batra was more of a personal journey. “It was a difficult role to play. On one hand, he was a sweet endearing Punjabi boy and on the other, he was a focused leader and a fierce soldier.”
The film, he says, is a tribute to all who sacrificed their lives in the Kargil War. “It’s not a commercial story for his family. For them, it’s an emotional aspect. We are paying our respects to the heroes of our country through the film. Only if his family likes the film, will I feel that I have managed to carry the rich legacy forward,” he says.
Shooting an emotionally charged film has its moments. One such moment was enacting the exceptional courage of the young officer the Pakistanis nicknamed Sher Shah, in the face of death. It shook Malhotra to the core. “While shooting the intense war scenes, I kept wondering what must have been going through Vikram’s mind. We were shooting at a height of 14,000 feet and I kept thinking of him. Fear stops us from doing so many things. But here was a courageous man who was hell-bent on going ahead and finishing the war at any cost,” says the actor, clearly awed.
During the 45-day schedule in Kargil, Malhotra had to step up his physical endurance and also learn the Army etiquette. “Shooting in Kargil was tough The oxygen level is low; it is windy. There are no trees around. Capt Batra combated fear, as the enemy kept firing from an advantageous height, and you can’t save yourself.” The climax was especially challenging and became an intense emotion-wrought moment for the cast and crew.
Is this film a turning point in his career? “Every film has been different, and the requirements and how you approach a role are different. Having said that, when I was training for the film I realised that soldiers never rest. They don’t know when they will get their next meal. They are always on their toes. Their training brings focus and dedication. You don’t have options. You need mental strength to stay focused,” says the actor, who came to Mumbai when he was 21. “There was a phase where I was lost in Mumbai. I was an alien. I have seen the best and worst of my life. I have worked hard for this independence—the freedom to make my own decisions,” says Malhotra. Just like Captain Vikram Batra who died so that we could live free.