Manushi Chhillar broke her silence on the age gap debate, asserting that she doesn’t mind being cast opposite older superstars like Akshay Kumar, citing that it would only help her get attention.

Manushi Chillar opens up about her age gap with Bade Miyan Chote Miyan co-star Akshay Kumar (Photo: Instagram/akshaykumar)

After winning the Miss World title in 2017, Manushi Chhillar made a rather risky Bollywood debut by playing the wife of Akshay Kumar, who is nearly 30 years her senior, in Samrat Prithviraj — counted among the biggest disasters in Bollywood. Years later, the 26-year-old reunited with the 56-year-old actor for the recently released actioner Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (BMCM) which too has failed to impress the audience and make its mark at the box office, despite being made on a massive budget and shot across exotic locations.

In a recent interview with Zoom, the Tariq actor, broke her silence on the age gap debate, asserting that she doesn’t mind being cast opposite older superstars like Akshay, citing that it would only help her get attention.

Chhillar acknowledged the allure of collaborating with big names in the industry. “There are many many facets to this. I can only speak for myself. He (Akshay) is a superstar. Many want to work with him, I want to work with him. We are all fans but I don’t cast for films and there are people who do (that). I am sure that everyone has their reason why they are casting who for which role and I don’t interfere with that (sic),” noted Chhillar, who was seen in Operation Valentine, opposite  Varun Tej.

ALOS READ: Emotional fan jumps on stage, hugs Atif Aslam during live concert; singer’s response wins internet’s heart

She added that superstars, irrespective of their age, bring visibility and attention to the project. “I see what role is being given to me and for me working with a superstar is good and that you will get a certain amount of visibility and there will be a certain amount of attention attached to it as well,” she added.

She further emphasised that her most recent project, BMCM, which was released on April 11, did not involve a romantic pairing. “I have really had fun working with him (Akshay). And for my first film, there was an age gap and they wanted to play the whole thing. In this (BMCM), there was no pairing. And it is also fine and I don’t see it as something atrocious or something which shouldn’t have been there,” said Chhillar adding, “We did songs for marketing. So they had to put two people together for the songs, but that’s pretty much it, which is fine. It wasn’t like a love story anyway.”

Looking ahead, Chhillar expressed a desire to explore a wider range of on-screen relationships. “I hope I get to romance younger heroes as well and vice-versa also it happens,” she added.

When rumours swirled about her involvement in the upcoming film Animal, Manushi set the record straight. “I wasn’t approached for the movie,” she stated. However, she did disclose her favourite character from the film. Rashmika Mandanna’s role truly resonated with me,” Chhillar shared.

She also shed light on why she couldn’t accept the role of Preeti, eventually essayed by Kiara Advani, opposite Shahid Kapoor in Kabir Singh. “There was a contractual obligation due to my Miss World title that prevented me from taking on the project,” she revealed.

BMCM, also starring Tiger Shroff and Alaya F, has been directed by Ali Abbas Zafar and co-produced by Jackky Bhagnani. It features Prithviraj Sukumaran as the antagonist.