Varun Dhawan Picks Sidharth Malhotra for Heated Rivalry Remake
On Koffee With Karan Season 9, Varun Dhawan named Sidharth Malhotra for a Bollywood Heated Rivalry remake and revisited their SOTY tension.
Varun Dhawan has named the co-star he would pick for a Bollywood remake of the Canadian romance series Heated Rivalry — and it is Sidharth Malhotra. The answer came during the third episode of Koffee With Karan Season 9, where Varun and Janhvi Kapoor were the guests and Arjun Kapoor joined the couch midway.
During the rapid-fire round, Karan Johar asked Varun which male co-star he would choose for the remake. Varun answered immediately: Sidharth Malhotra, the actor who debuted alongside him in Student of the Year in 2012. Karan, who launched both actors, called the pairing “quite sexy”.
The SOTY tension takes over social media
Varun explained that the chemistry was already visible in their first film. “I think there was (sexual) tension (between them) even in SOTY,” he said, adding that many people wanted him and Sidharth to end up together, more than with Alia Bhatt’s character.
Arjun Kapoor joked that this alternate version existed only in Varun’s imagination. The clip has since circulated widely on X, where one post has nearly a million views. Fans are sharing edits of Rohan and Abhimanyu from Student of the Year, re-reading their on-screen rivalry as a love story.
Why Heated Rivalry fits the moment
Heated Rivalry follows two professional hockey players, Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, whose fierce on-ice rivalry slowly turns into a hidden romance. Adapted from Rachel Reid’s Game Changers novels, the series stars Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie.
- The show premiered in India on Lionsgate Play in February 2026 in English and Hindi.
- It has become a breakout global hit, with its two leads gaining fame well beyond the series.
- Season 2 is currently filming and is scheduled for release in 2027.
The fan-cast works because it pairs the heat of a proven international format with the nostalgia of Student of the Year, a film that made Varun, Sidharth and Alia into stars. No Bollywood remake has been announced, but the response shows how quickly an imagined project can turn into a social media campaign.
What’s next for Varun
Separately, Varun is reportedly in talks to lead Yash Raj Films’ first-ever horror feature, directed by Abhay Pannu. If it materialises, it would be his first film with YRF since Sui Dhaaga in 2018.
For now, the Heated Rivalry conversation remains exactly that — a very popular “what if” from the Koffee couch.
Source: Hindustan Times
The room talks
0 comments