Kartik Aaryan last year announced that he’ll be starring in Aashiqui 3, the third installment of Aashiqui (1990) which starred Rahul Roy and Anu Aggarwal. The franchise was revived in 2013 with Aashiqui 2, directed by Mohit Suri and starring Shraddha Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur, which was a box office success. However, there was mystery around the female lead with a various names doing the rounds. Now it looks like the makers have finally zeroed in a name. According to a report by ETimes, the makers of Aashiqui 3 have decided to cast actress Akanksha Sharma to play the lead female role in the film.
Moreover, a source said, "Akanksha has had multiple meetings with the makers of the film and there is a possibility that things might get locked."The source further added that because Akansha is "fresh new face" and makers of Aashiqui have always looked forward to introducing fresh pairings - like Rahul Roy and Anu Agarwal or Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor - so she will be just perfect to be a part of Anurag Basu's Aashiqui 3. Interestingly, top names like Katrina Kaif and Deepika Padukone were being considered by the makers of the film to star opposite Kartik Aaryan, but apparently they didn't want any actress who has worked with the Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 actor before. So, as they were in a search for a new and fresh face, Akanksha took the limelight. Akanksha has worked in the Kannada industry for a long time. In fact, she was also seen in the music video titled Disco 82 alongside Tiger Shroff.