Suniel Shetty says he would have returned for 'Border 2' had his character survived in the original

Mumbai: Suniel Shetty considers filmmaker J P Dutta’s war film ‘Border’ one of the most defining experiences of his career and said he would have returned for the upcoming sequel had his character not been killed in the 1997 movie.

The 64-year-old actor attended the launch of the song ‘Jaate Hue Lamhon’, a remake of the song from the original album of the war drama. The track features in ‘Border 2’, which is set to be released in theatres on January 23.

‘Border’, which was inspired by real events from the 1971 India-Pakistan war, featured Shetty as Captain Bhairon Singh, a battle-hardened Indian Army officer martyred towards the end of the film.

“I will never forget ‘Border’. When I was offered this character, I was scared as I felt I would be able to play this character because playing a reel life character is easy but essaying a real-life character is very difficult,” he told reporters.

Shetty added, “When I got my death sequence, I was very happy. When you die for the country, it feels good. But for the first time, I felt that if I were alive in ‘Border’, then I would have become part of ‘Border 2’. I always had this itch to wear the uniform.”

‘Border 2’, directed by Anurag Singh, brings back Sunny Deol alongside a host of new cast, which includes Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh and Shetty’s son Ahan Shetty. Shetty said he is indebted to the filmmaker for giving Ahan an opportunity after his debut in the 2021 film ‘Tadap’.

“It is his second film and he has been given such a huge responsibility. To get the opportunity to play a naval officer in just his second film and possibly one of the first naval officers depicted on screen in Indian cinema is truly special. I feel blessed.”

The actor said people assume his son would automatically get work because he is Suniel Shetty’s son, but that’s not true. “There is a lot he has gone through in life. That is why I am so happy he got a ‘Border’ like film. He could not have asked for a better project than this. I only pray that he has done justice to the role and that the film works for all of us,” Shetty said.