Kartik Aaryan’s unkempt hair and bearded look from Anurag Basu’s upcoming romantic film has been doing the rounds online for a few weeks. The actor’s new avatar, however, hasn’t gone down well with everyone. A collage of his pictures recently went viral after meme page Viral Trollz shared it on Instagram, poking fun at his rugged appearance and comparing it to that of a ‘bhikhari’. What caught more attention was the reaction from Triptii Dimri’s rumoured boyfriend, Sam Merchant.

In the viral post, Kartik is seen in a scruffy avatar, giving intense expressions. The text on the image read, “Bhai pura time bhikhari look mai hype banata reh gaya. Udhar Saiyaara ne baazi maar li,” referring to the buzz around another upcoming film, Saiyaara, which fans believe has already stolen the spotlight. Both Basu’s film and Saiyaara are being called spiritual successors to the Aashiqui franchise, though neither has been officially announced as such.

The caption of the meme read, “Bechara,” to which Sam Merchant responded with wide-eyed grinning emojis in the comments. A Reddit user soon shared a screenshot of the post and Sam’s reaction, sparking discussion across forums. “Is this because Triptii got replaced in the film?” one person asked. Another wrote, “Harsh but true!” while someone else added, “You can’t blame him, the meme’s actually funny.”

 

Kartik was earlier set to star opposite Triptii Dimri in the film, but she was replaced by Telugu actor Sreeleela earlier this year. The yet-untitled project is now set for a Diwali 2025 release, with Kartik sporting a dishevelled, grungy look for the romantic drama.

Beyond this film, Kartik has Tu Meri Main Tera, Main Tera Tu Meri, a romantic comedy directed by Sameer Vidwans, lined up for release on February 13, 2026. He’s also gearing up for Nagzilla, a fantasy-comedy by Mrighdeep Singh Lamba, which hits theatres on August 14, 2026.

Kartik and Triptii last shared screen space in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, which released in 2024.