Athiya Shetty has attributed her Bollywood career to superstar Salman Khan.

Athiya, who is the daughter of actor Suniel Shetty, made her Bollywood debut with 2015 film 'Hero', which was co-produced by Salman. Also starring Sooraj Pancholi, the film, which was directed by Nikhil Advani, is a remake of filmmaker Subhash Ghai's directed 1983 film of the same name, which starred Jackie Shroff.

Asked if she credits her career in Bollywood to the 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' star, Athiya told in an interview: "Of course, he launched Sooraj and I so definitely I owe him a lot. Both him and Nikhil sir. So yeah always and always grateful to him."

The 23-year-old is now gearing up for her next film 'Mubarakan', which is directed by Anees Bazmee. The film, which also stars Anil Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor and Ileana D'Cruz, is slated to release on July 28, 2017.