HELLO!: From Shershaah to Mission Majnu, that’s two HELLO! awards in a row! How does this acknowledgement feel?
Sidharth Malhotra: “It’s very satisfying when you get appreciated for your hard work and passion. I’m elated to have received two HELLO! ‘Best Actor’ awards, the first for Shershaah and now for Mission Majnu. This one goes to all my fans out there. They’ve always been an enormous source of motivation and encouragement for me and are the most beautiful thing in the world. I want to thank HELLO! magazine for this wonderful title.”
H!: What’s your benchmark for success? When did you feel like you had finally ‘arrived?’
SM: “I’ve received love and validation since the beginning of my career, be it in the early years of Student of the Year, Hasee Toh Phasee, Ek Villain, Kapoor & Sons, or even recently for Shershaah and Mission Majnu. An actor only feels ‘arrived’ when he gets that validation from the audience. That’s what makes me strive to keep reinventing myself. So, for me, it’s more of an ongoing process. I hope to keep entertaining the audience and my fans for many more years to come.”
H!: In your 11 years in the industry, what’s been your biggest learning?
SM: “The audience is always right! That’s my biggest learning from a decade-long career in the film business. To keep my fans and cinema lovers engaged, I constantly strive to evolve as an actor. Be it in the technique, the storytelling or the performance. I challenge myself and my work repertoire by choosing scripts that give me variety and versatility. I still feel that the journey has just begun, and there are so many more shades yet to be portrayed on camera.”
H!: Which projects are you most excited about for 2023?
SM: “We kickstarted the year with Mission Majnu. I have two projects lined up for this year, starting with an action thriller, Yodha— a first-of-its-kind action franchise for Dharma Productions. The film is slated for a mid-year release. Apart from this, I’m making my web series debut with Rohit Shetty’s Indian Police Force on Amazon Prime Video. It’s in a zone Rohit sir knows best — his cop universe! So, 2023 has got me playing heroic characters, and I look forward to entertaining the audience again.”
This has been adapted for the web from a story originally published in the May-June 2023 issue of HELLO! India. Get our copy of the latest issue right here!
