Karan Johar turns teacher again

Young actor Saqib Saleem, who is playing the lead role in Yash Raj Films’ Mere Dad Ki Maruti (MDKM), seems to have made an impression with the right people. Even before the film’s release, Karan Johar has taken him under his wing. Last year, Karan mentored three debutants — Varun Dhawan,
Sidharth Malhotra and Alia Bhatt — who acted in his film, Student Of The Year, and they have all managed to make their place in the industry. Now, he has signed Saqib for his next, Bombay Talkies, and is guiding him the same way.
A source close to the actor reveals, “Saqib is part of not one but two films with big banners — YRF and Dharma Productions. He doesn’t want to go wrong in any way. Karan is now mentoring him for the promotions of MDKM.”
The source adds, “Karan saw a few rushes of the film and felt that Saqib has spunk. After that, he was keen to cast him in his own movie. He is giving Saqib tips on how to go about with the promotions, give interviews to the media and present himself
in public.”
So far, Karan has given the Delhi boy a lot of valuable advice. “It is really sweet of him to help Saqib. For a newcomer who is a complete outsider, this is a great way to understand the industry better. Everyone has seen how well the debutants of Karan’s previous film did. Now, Saqib is looked at in exactly the same manner.”
MKDM will hit theatres on March 15. Bombay Talkies releases on May 3. The source adds, “Everyone’s hoping that MDKM gets a good response and Saqib, along with his co-star Rhea (Chakraborty), does well.”