BOMBAY TIMES (September 25, 2018)

Since the time it was announced, the Hindi remake of the Telugu blockbuster, Arjun Reddy, has been in the news. First, the producers signed the director of the original, Sandeep Vanga, to helm the Hindi version as well. Next, the film made headlines when Shahid Kapoor was chosen to play the title role. Now, Kiara Advani has been cast opposite Shahid as the film’s female lead. From the time the director was scouting for his heroine, Kiara was his first choice. He had even met and discussed the possibility with her, but later, due to date issues (the film was supposed to go on floors in August earlier), their talks stalled.

Now that the film is going on floors in October, things have fallen back into place. Earlier this week, Kiara was signed on and she has even started her creative meetings with the team.

For Kiara, this could easily be a game changer, as this is one of the most challenging roles of her career so far. The actress tells BT, “Arjun Reddy has always been one of my favourite films. There are so many shades to the heroine’s character. I’m very excited about this opportunity.” This layered character will require Kiara to display a range of emotions. Even her look for the role will see variations. It’s also her first movie with Shahid. As Sandeep puts it, “Kiara is the perfect choice to play the female lead in our film. She has the right combination of innocence and maturity, and that’s important for the character.”