Salman Khan, Saajan and a Sri Lankan fan’s trip to Hindi and IPL

New Delhi: Two best friends, Aman (Sanjay Dutt) and Akash (Salman Khan), fell in love with the same woman, Pooja (Madhuri says). But in the emotional climax of Saajan, Akash steps aside and takes Pooja to Aman. “Pooja ko laaya hoon, uske Saajan se milaane,” he said as he placed her hand on Aman’s – a moment that made the film a Bollywood classic.Shehan Malik, now an actor and content creator, witnessed this scene as a child in Kegalle and made a life decision.

“In the last scene, Salman Khan had tears in his eyes. After watching that scene, I decided to become an actor,” Sheahan told TimesofIndia.com in Hindi.

Learn Hindi through Bollywood

Thus began Sheahan’s quest to learn and speak Hindi. “I started watching only Hindi films. After that, even I didn’t know how, and one day I stood in front of the mirror and tried out Salman Khan’s dialogues. That’s when I realized that I knew a little bit of Hindi,” recalls Shehan, a native Sinhala speaker.He never took any formal classes. The language was developed gradually through scenes, songs and repeated viewings of Bollywood movies. It was an unusual path for someone from a Sinhala background.

Shehan is now an actor and content creator, and his deer-talking videos are going viral on social media. Like most Indian kids in the south Indian subcontinent, cricket was a big part of his upbringing and he even played the sport at junior level in Sri Lanka alongside Sri Lankan internationals Kusal Mendis and Niroshan Dickwella. “I played cricket as a kid (I played cricket as a kid). My school is St. Mary’s College in Kegler. I played cricket for five years till U-19 [level]. Kusal Mendis, Niroshan Dickwella, I played with them at the provincial level. “

intense pulsed light through the lens of Sri Lanka

Shehan comes to India when IPL 2026 starts. He watched some games first in Delhi, then Mumbai and then Hyderabad.Talking about the experience of watching the IPL as a fan, the Hindi-speaking Sri Lankan said: “In Sri Lanka, the LPL is being held, but I didn’t find fans who were passionate about a particular team. I hardly see anyone going all out for Colombo, all out for Galle, or all out for Candy. “Comparing the rivalry between fans during the IPL, Malik said: “I am very surprised by Indian cricket fans. 1.2 billion people unite for the World Cup and within 20 days you start beating each other up on social media? Then you start this huge Mahabharata.”

Talking about the difference in experience of Indian and Sri Lankan cricket culture, Shehan said, “It was 11 pm and I was exploring the streets of Mumbai and enjoying the nightlife of Mumbai. As I was walking I saw an indoor cricket ground. Guess what? Only women were playing cricket there. I was like oh my God! At 11 o’clock, they played on the indoor net without fear. I found it very different from what we saw in Sri Lanka.“In contrast to Sri Lanka, Shehan observed, “I live in Colombo, Sri Lanka. In Colombo, we don’t see this very often.”Shehan learned Hindi through movies, which now helps him connect with Indians. He has played cricket since he was a child, which brings him closer to the Indian playing atmosphere.For Sheahan, however, the actor he saw on screen for the first time remains someone he hopes to meet. “I hope to meet Salman Khan one day. I want to work in Bollywood,” he says with hope and ambition.