Kesari Veer: Legends of Somnath is Sooraj Pancholi’s first film after his 2023 acquittal in the Jiah Khan case. In the historical drama that also stars Suniel Shetty and Vivek Oberoi, Pancholi plays Hamirji Gohil, a warrior who defended the Somnath Temple from attack in the 14th century. “Not all actors in their career are offered a warrior film. I was offered this film because of my physicality; they wanted someone young and strong,” he says.

Pancholi, who debuted with Hero (2015), is in his 10th year at the movies. Yet, Kesari Veer is only his fourth film. That is a personal choice, he states. “I had done a film, and I don’t know why I did it. But after that, I vowed that I’d never take up a project that made me feel terrible on set. Now, I only want to take up work that excites me. I wish this was my time to say, ‘Look at the volume,’ but it’s not.”