Kiara Advani and Sidharth Malhotra recently tied the knot in Jaisalmer in the presence of family and close friends with only a few celebs in attendance. The couple then hosted a start-studded reception in Mumbai which was also attended by Captain Vikram Batra’s family.
For the unversed, On July 7, 23 years ago, Captain Vikram Batra was martyred while getting the peak of Kargil, Point 4875, vacated from the occupation of Pakistan. The Indian Army officer was only 24 years old at the time. Sidharth Malhotra won the hearts of the audience with his portrayal of real-life war hero Captain Vikram Batra (PVC) in the movie Shershaah, released on August 12.
Captain Vikram Batra’s twin brother Vishal Batra, his wife and his daughter Aadya also attented the event. Vishal, in his recent interview talked about his bond with the actor. While speaking to ETimes, he said, “I met Sidharth in December 2015 when the idea of the movie came up. We have been in touch regularly despite the fact that the movie released two years ago, and he is a good friend now. It was lovely of him to invite us. For me, it was also a feeling that I couldn’t see Vikram’s wedding… It took me through various emotions, and being an identical twin, it’s something that can’t be explained in words. We got a message from Kiara, too, saying they are looking forward to us attending the wedding.”
On being asked if he already knew about the wedding, he said, “I never spoke to Sidharth about it. Shabbir bhai (Shabbir Boxwala, co-producer of Shershaah) did tell me they were planning to get married. I think they got closer because of the movie, and I am very happy they got married. The real Vikram and Dimple could not get married, but the reel Vikram and Dimple have, and that is a lovely feeling. Our blessings are with them. They are a lovely couple. They are two wonderful individuals, and I have never interacted with them as stars. Recently, Sidharth even called me and asked me to attend the trailer launch of Mission Majnu in Delhi. He said, ‘I want you here with me’. It’s a brotherly feeling; otherwise, why do I need to be there for the launch.”
Some people related Kiara and Sidharth’s wedding to Captain Vikram Batra and Dimple Cheema’s love story. While talking about the same, Vishal said, “I have been reading some things, this is a way for people to shower their love. They saw an image of Vikram in Sidharth. People draw a lot of courage from Vikrm’s acts. They got to know his story – his bravery and his love story – through the film. Vikram left us so early, but this couple got close because of Vikram and Dimple’s life, it’s only right that people shower love on them.”
While talking about the film, Vishal said, “Sidharth did absolute justice to the role, and so did Kiara. Yes, Vikram’s physical absence continues to haunt me a lot (we are identical twins), but look how he has created a name for himself, and he continues to live. Next year, he will complete 25 years of his sacrifice, and people still remember him. I always have these mixed emotions where I feel sad and miss my brother, but also feel extremely proud of him.”
