Salman Khan on 'Sikandar' and 31-Year Age Gap With Rashmika Mandanna: 'I Will Work With Her Daughter Too'

Superstar Salman Khan was at his candid best during the trailer launch of his upcoming Eid release Sikandar, where he addressed concerns regarding the whopping age gap between him and his co-star Rashmika Mandanna.

Directed by AR Murugadoss, the film features Khan, 59, romancing the 28-year-old Mandanna. Ever since the first teaser drop earlier this year, the massive age gap of 31 years between the lead pair has been a talking point on social media.

"They say there’s a 31-year age gap between me and the heroine. But if the heroine has no problem, and even her father is okay with it, why do you have a problem?" Khan quipped at the launch, which was attended by the cast and crew, including the Pushpa 2 star.

"When she gets married and has a daughter, and when that daughter becomes a star, I will work with her too. Her mother’s (Rashmika’s) permission will be sorted," he added.

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Khan, however, went on to praise Mandanna for her dedication and recalled how she would finish shooting Pushpa 2 at 7 PM, and then join the Sikandar team by 9 PM.

"She would work till 6.30 in the morning and then go back to work on Pushpa 2. Even after she broke her leg, she continued to shoot with us and didn’t cancel a single day. She reminds me a lot of the younger me," the actor added.

Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, Sikandar also stars Kajal Aggarwal, Sathyaraj, Sharman Joshi, and Prateik Babbar among others. The film is gearing up for a grand release on Sunday, March 30.

This is Khan's first full-fledged film in two years after Tiger 3, which was also released on a Sunday during 2023 Diwali. Since then, he has featured in two special appearances in Singham Again and Baby John, which were both 2024 releases.