Happy Birthday Sidharth Malhotra: Tracing the Student of the Year's journey to Shershaah

A young model from Delhi arrived in Mumbai with dreams of becoming an actor. Nothing came to him served on the platter, for he had no godfather in the industry when starting off. Even today, comparatively, Sidharth Malhotra is a self-made star who took inspiration from Shah Rukh Khan and was lucky enough to find a mentor in Karan Johar.

As Sidharth turns 37 today and adds another successful film, Shershaah, to his kitty, we trace back to the times when this handsome young man started opposite 'star kids' Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt and his journey so far.

Back in 2012 (yes, the film will complete a decade this year), Student Of The Year was released. It was the debut project for Sidharth, the actor. We go a little back to learn about the project. Before landing the role of an actor, that too, opposite Varun, Sidharth spent time with Dhawan Jr. The two were assistant directors on Karan Johar's My Name Is Khan, starring SRK in the lead role (Kajol played the female lead in the movie). Thus, it was quite special for the two to begin their acting journey together as well, more so in a film directed by Karan. A decade later, all three actors have made a mark of their own in the industry and have a loyal fan following despite going through all the ups and downs in their careers.

Even though Sidharth was romantically paired with Alia in SOTY, it was Varun and Alia who became the IT Bollywood Jodi. Thus, Sidharth went ahead and did his second project with Parineeti Chopra. The film, titled Hasee Toh Phasee, fared well at the box office, and even today, people remember the movie fondly. However, Sidharth needed a bigger hit in his career, which came in the form of Ek Villain, co-starring Shraddha Kapoor and Riteish Deshmukh.

The actor sunk his teeth into playing a character who has dark shades but knows where the boundaries are. It was because of this intense character and Riteish's role as an antagonist that Ek Villain became a huge hit, the second in Sidharth's career after SOTY. The film was almost career-defining for him. However, the actor became a victim of comparisons. When Ek Villain was released, Varun was also seen in a dark film called Badlapur, which was also a huge hit. While Sidharth was trying to stay afloat and was getting hits on the way, Varun became untouchable with SOTY, Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, and then, Badlapur.

It was to break out of the comparisons and still try to prove he was an actor that Sidharth took on experimental projects. From working on the Indian remake of Warrior, Brothers with Akshay Kumar to being a part of a time-travel film called Baar Baar Dekho, Sidharth tried his hand at different projects but was constantly criticized for his acting. Nonetheless, he kept on moving forward, hoping to strike a chord sometime soon.

That is when the actor announced he was a part of Captain Vikram Batra's biopic. By 2018, the actors were being finalized to be a part of the project. As per Sidharth's own words during his interaction with OTTplay, Captain Vikram Batra's brother, Vishal Batra, and the Batra family were sure that Sidharth was the only actor who could do justice to Captain Vikram Batra's role, and thus, Shershaah went on floors with him as the lead actor. Although Sidharth appeared in lead roles in Baar Baar Dekho, A Gentleman, Ittefaq, Jabariya Jodi, and Marjaavaan, he once again needed a project that would put him back on the map in terms of a project that stays with people. That happened with Shershaah, which was originally simply called Captain Vikram Batra Biopic.

Nearly two years after shooting for the film, it was ready for the world. However, COVID-19 hit India and Sidharth's last release, Marjaavaan, was released in theatres in 2019. Like many other actors, he did not have a movie released for a whole year, and thus, in 2021, Johar and he decided to release Shershaah directly on OTT. The decision was much-welcomed and it became the most viewed film on OTT that year. Not just that, Sidharth was lauded for his performance too. The success was on par with, and in fact, much more than, what Sid had seen in his entire career span. The gamechanger movie was released around Independence Week (August 12) and set a new benchmark for Sidharth, the actor.

Currently, this 37-year-old has Mission Majnu, Thank God, and Yodha in his kitty. In Thank God, Sidharth will share the screen space with Ajay Devgn. Meanwhile, Mission Majnu and Yodha see Sidharth as the leading hero. While Mission Majnu, as the name suggests, is a spy-thriller film, Yodha is a high-end aerial action movie. They both fall into the category of the most-awaited movies of 2022–2023. 

Here's hoping the birthday man finds more success post-Shershaah.