Harsh, who was eyeing the black lady for first film as actor, lashes out at Punjabi superstar who won it
Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; January 19, 2017)

Last year, Harshvardhan Kapoor, 26, made his Bollywood debut in filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s fantasy romance thriller, Mirzya. Although the movie didn’t fare well at the box office, the young actor’s potential was lauded. In fact, veteran actor Anil Kapoor’s son also bagged a couple of awards for a promising debut. But he missed out on the big one last weekend.

Harshvardhan returned home empty-handed after the Best Debutant Male trophy of a popular film award was picked up by Punjabi actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh for his performance in the Shahid and Kareena Kapoor-starrer Udta Punjab. In a moment of candor reminiscent of his outspoken sister, actor Sonam Kapoor, Harshvardhan admitted that he was disappointed with the decision.

Expressing his displeasure, he told hitlist, “Although I picked up two debutant awards earlier, I was really looking forward to winning the black lady. But I guess every awards event has its own parameters. I’ll be honest, though. I think a debutant award is meant for someone working on his first film. It shouldn’t go to an actor who has worked in several films in another industry or language.”

Diljit has worked in over 10 projects in Hindi and Punjabi cinema, some of them, including the popular Jatt and Juliet, emerging blockbusters at the box office. “For instance, if Leonardo DiCaprio works in a Hindi film, is he making an acting debut? He has already worked in so many Hollywood films,” Harsh argues.

The loss of a trophy and a debut’s average business hasn’t deterred him from keeping his hopes up. He is currently busy shooting for Vikramaditya Motwane’s Bhavesh Joshi. “I am really excited about the film, because it is an interesting subject. There is a biopic on the cards too,” he shares.

The biopic, in which Harsh plays the titular role, is based on the life of Olympian shooter Abhinav Bindra. The Vishal Bhardwaj production awaits finalising of the remaining cast.