Noida-based mountaineer Arjun Vajpai is preparing for his second attempt at India’s highest mountain peak Kanchenjunga , which he will attempt to scale next month. However, barely a month before the 25-year-old sets out on the expedition; his preparations received a shot in the arm from an unexpected source – Bollywood star Hrithik Roshan . A soft drink brand recreated Arjun’s 2012 attempt at summiting Mt Cho Oyu as part of its ‘Risk Takers of India’ campaign, in an ad where Hrithik played Arjun. In 2012, during his first attempt at Cho Oyu, Arjun fell ill during the climb and was left paralysed and hanging on for dear life. He eventually did conquer the mountain four years later in what he described as ‘a very emotionally satisfying moment’. The ad, released earlier this month, recreates Arjun’s second attempt at the peak with Hrithik playing the young mountaineer.Arjun VajpaiArjun says the actor reached out to him before the TVC was shot and the two had a couple of chats where they shared anecdotes from their lives, with Hrithik taking keen interest in Arjun’s journey so far. “It is a great pleasure for me that Hrithik agreed to play me in the ad. We had a couple of chats and we shared stories from our lives. He was nice enough to take interest in my journey and was keen to hear about how I felt when I was up there (during the Cho Oyu ascent in 2012),” says Arjun. Talking about the significance of the ad, Arjun says, “The Cho Oyu climb gave me a lot of learnings for life and it is good that what I learnt can now reach millions of people. That is the idea: to reach out to young Indians and help them discover the mountain that they need to climb.” But if Arjun feels privileged to have Hrithik play him on screen, the actor says he is a fan too. “Arjun is a true inspiration. It is rare that you come across someone who is so passionate about something and that too at such a young age. I am proud to be the one bringing alive his journey on screen. I salute his courage and wish him luck as he gets set to conquer Mt Kangchenjunga,” says Hrithik.A screen grab from the adArjun holds the distinction of being the youngest Indian to reach the summit of Mount Everest , a feat he achieved at the age of 17. Since then, he has scaled four other mountain peaks, all of which stand over 8000m. Last year, he attempted to climb Kanchenjunga but could not reach the summit due to inclement weather. This year, he is re-attempting to reach the summit, but with the added caveat of no personal Sherpa and no supplementary oxygen to help him. “It is something that has not been attempted by any Indian, so I am looking forward to it. I am fortunate to have seen the terrain once last year but it won’t be easy. Given that it is India’s highest mountain peak, I feel it is an added responsibility as an Indian that I summit this one,” he tells us. The Kanchenjunga expedition is part of Arjun’s attempt to complete the True Explorers’ Grand Slam –climbing all the 14 peaks that are over 8000m in altitude. At age 25, he has already summited five of these with Kanchenjunga being the sixth such peak.

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