One man's loss is another man's gain: Ayushmann replaces Sidharth
Mumbai: Sidharth Malhotra’s latest release Ittefaq alongside Sonakshi Sinha has failed to set box office on fire. Both critics and audiences lauded film’s another lead Akshaye Khanna’s performance better. The film is currently doing average business at the box office. Even previously, with films like Baar Baar Dekho and A Gentleman, Sidharth couldn’t manage to woo the audience. And it looks like, despite being a good performer, Sidharth Malhotra is losing his position amongst the highly competitive young actors in Bollywood.
The latest buzz is that a well known production house has replaced Sidharth Malhotra as the main lead of an upcoming quirky comedy. The film will now have Ayushmann Khurrana, who is fresh off the super success of his latest films like Bareilly ki Barfi and Shubh Mangal Savdhan. The soon-to-be-announced film is being bankrolled by the same production house who delivered a sleeper hit earlier this year with Ayushmann. They are also producing a film with one popular Bollywood actress which is based on a novel.
An industry insider said, “Sidharth Malhotra’s disastrous run at the box office with Baar Baar Dekho and A Gentleman had put the makers of the film in doubt of his capability to attract audiences. The underwhelming opening and weekend run of Ittefaq was the final nail in the coffin and the team decided to replace Sidharth with Ayushmann Khurrana.”
The source also adds, “Over time Ayushmann has acquired an audience base in the genre of comedy and is currently considered a more bankable star than Sidharth by film producers.”
Trade expert Akshaye Rathi gives his opinion about Sidharth Malhotra's position in Bollywood, He says, “It all depends on Sidharth’s choice of films. At the end of the day, for filmmakers to determine whether a film is a hit or flop, it comes down to the ratio of budget to earnings. With Sidharth, who’s average box office earnings are somewhere roughly around Rs 40 crore, compared to the likes of Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan who boast a box office average of roughly Rs 250 crore and Rs 150 crore respectively, there is good chance that if Sidharth chooses his films wisely, he may climb up the ladder as well.”
Currently Sidharth Malhotra is busy with Neeraj Pandey's 'Aiyaary', opposite actors Manoj Bajpayee and Rakul Preet. Ayushmann Khurrana is shooting for Sriram Raghvan's 'Shoot the Piano Player', co-starring Tabu and Radhika Apte.
