Salman Khan
Bollywood star Salman KhanVarinder Chawla

Salman Khan, who is all set to launch two newcomers, Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty, with his production venture "Hero", feels that Shahid Kapoor did not have a 'proper launch' in Bollywood. 

Speaking on the importance of a good launch for a newcomer, Salman stated that Hrithik Roshan was the only actor who had a good debut in recent times.

"A proper launch for a newcomer is very important. There have been films where someone was launched and the film worked, but what after that? The last person who was properly launched as a hero in the industry was Hrithik Roshan. Even Shahid Kapoor didn't have that launch," News Room Post quoted the "Prem Ratan Dhan Payo" actor as saying.

"Shaandaar" actor Shahid Kapoor made his debut with the movie "Ishq Vishk" (2003), while Hrithik Roshan, who is currently trending for the revised song video "Dheere Dheere Se", entered Bollywood with the blockbuster "Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai" (2000).

Salman has not only produced the film "Hero" but has also been sincerely promoting the flick. While he is confident that Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty will make the film a hit, Salman asserted that the pressure of the film's success is mostly on him.

"The pressure of the movie becoming a success is more on me. I don't want to let them down. The choice of the director and the script was mine. So, if anything goes wrong here, it comes on to my head. But, whatever the fate of the film is, I believe that these two are going to make it big," the producer stated.

Directed by Nikhil Advani, the movie "Hero" happens to be a remake of the 1983 Jackie Shroff starrer film by the same name. The film will be released on 11 September.