Sidharth Malhotra's Shershaah is up for release on Thursday on Amazon Prime Video. The film is based on the life of Indian soldier, Param Vir Chakra awardee Captain Vikram Batra and who fought during the Kargil War.
Shershaah is directed by Vishnu Varadhan and also stars Kiara Advani. It traces Vikram Batra's journey from a young man from Palampur to the soldier who won a key victory against Pakistan-backed forces in Kashmir before he died in 1999.
Not just for his valour, Vikram Batra was also known for his witty one liners that left an impact. He came into limelight after newspapers and television channels splashed stories describing how he called into base after capturing a crucial peak against all odds with a slogan from a popular Pepsi ad "Yeh dil maange more (the heart wants more)".
Not only that, he even famously 'refused' to give Madhuri Dixit to the Pakistani soldiers. During a Ted Talk in 2017, Vikram's brother Vishal Batra spoke about the episode at length. He revealed how some Pakistani soldiers had intercepted Vikram's communication and tried to threaten him.
"When he was going up again, his radio was intercepted by one of the Pakistani soldiers who challenged him, told him, 'Hey Shershaah (as was his codename), don't come up or you'll have a tough time.' That was the time Vikram thought 'how can a Pakistani challenge me?' And I believe true leaders are people who challenge themselves. They accept the challenge. It's not an easy task... And that was the time that Vikram replied to this soldier that we would see in the next one hour who stays at the top. And during this course of interception by the enemy, Pakistani soldier said, 'You know we are going to beat you. Throw you back. And we will take away one of your most famous Bollywood heroines.'
{{/usCountry}}"When he was going up again, his radio was intercepted by one of the Pakistani soldiers who challenged him, told him, 'Hey Shershaah (as was his codename), don't come up or you'll have a tough time.' That was the time Vikram thought 'how can a Pakistani challenge me?' And I believe true leaders are people who challenge themselves. They accept the challenge. It's not an easy task... And that was the time that Vikram replied to this soldier that we would see in the next one hour who stays at the top. And during this course of interception by the enemy, Pakistani soldier said, 'You know we are going to beat you. Throw you back. And we will take away one of your most famous Bollywood heroines.'
{{/usCountry}}He continued, "And that was the time when Vikram said, 'not on'. He attacked so ferociously that he destroyed all the bunkers and before they could hoist a tricolour on the peak, Vikram lobbed a hand-grenade very softly and said, 'To all of you with love, from Madhuri Dixit'."
Vikram Batra was posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest military honour, after he was killed in enemy cross-fire while trying to move an injured colleague to safety.
The film will be released on Amazon's Prime Video streaming platform on August 12.
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