EXCLUSIVE: Sajid Ali reacts to TERRIFIC response to Laila Majnu in Srinagar: “For the first time in my life, I saw a house full show of my film”; Inox Srinagar owner reveals “Friday show was sold out in 90 minutes; Monday 2 pm show is about to get full; I have RARELY seen this kind of frenzy” : Bollywood News – Bollywood Hungama
The weekend gone by turned out to be pleasantly surprising for the team of Laila Majnu. It was released in 2018 but didn’t get its due in cinemas. Over the years, it achieved cult status. It was never released in Kashmir, where the film is set, since cinemas were shut in the valley. Now that Inox Srinagar is open and doing great, the makers released Laila Majnu on Friday, August 2. And the overwhelming response has astonished everyone associated with the film.
EXCLUSIVE: Sajid Ali reacts to TERRIFIC response to Laila Majnu in Srinagar: “For the first time in my life, I saw a house full show of my film”; Inox Srinagar owner reveals “Friday show was sold out in 90 minutes; Monday 2 pm show is about to get full; I have RARELY seen this kind of frenzy”
On Friday, director Sajid Ali, lead actor Avinash Tiwary along with actor Mir Sarwar interacted with the fans and press in Inox Srinagar. Sajid Ali said, “Laila Majnu ko re-release karne ka idea logon ka tha. Kashmir ke logon ne isse apni kahani samaj ke isko kheecha hai theatres mein. I’ll always be indebted to the people and land of Kashmir.”
He also said how he looked for authenticity while casting saying, “Even in Mumbai, we were hunting for Kashmiri actors. This is how we came across Mir Sarwar. Some actors were also cast from Kashmir.”
Avinash Tiwary is not from Kashmir and yet bagged the lead part. The actor revealed, “He (Sajid Ali) told me, ‘Aapko Kashmiri banna padega’. Uske baad se hum Kashmir ke khaas ban gaye!” His statement led to applause.
On the Kashmir release, Sajid Ali revealed, “I was not nervous at all. For the first time in my life, I saw a house full show of Laila Majnu! This is something that money can’t buy. Through money, we managed to release it for the first time but tab film ko dekhne koi aaya nahin. But here, without much effort from our side, people came on their own to see it. This speaks volumes about the love they have for the film.”
He was asked why he didn’t show the usual clichés associated with Kashmir like violence, terrorism, etc. Sajid replied, “Kya Kashmir ki kahani itni hi hai kya? People have a life out here – they also get married, get separated, give birth to kids, etc. It was my brother Imtiaz Ali’s idea that Laila Majnu should be based here. From the inception level, we were clear that we would focus on the people. We unnecessarily didn’t want to get into aspects that others were focusing on (when making films on Kashmir).”
Exhibitor speaks up
Vikas Dhar, the owner of Inox Srinagar, was in high spirits as he spoke about Laila Majnu’s performance. He said, “We opened with one show each on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. All 3 of them were house full. On Friday itself, we realized there was a demand. Hence, we added one show on Saturday as well as Sunday. Those shows were all sold out! So, we added another show, at 8 pm show on Saturday, which is a bit late for Srinagar’s residents. Yet, it had a decent occupancy. Then, we played another show on Sunday at 11:30 am which had a 60-70% occupancy. The other 2 shows were also full. I am confident that Monday’s 2 pm show will also be full or almost full.”
As of 12:30 pm on August 5, the 2:00 pm is almost sold out. When asked if the film will play with multiple shows in a day throughout the week, Vikas Dhar replied, “We’ll see what the demand is. Right now, I want to get some longevity. There are a lot of people who want to see the film but are maybe busy this week. Hence, I am trying to play the film next week as well.”
He further said, “Laila Majnu is getting so much of love that I can’t tell you. They don’t call Avinash Tiwary by his name. They address him as Qais Bhat! He visited the theatre on Saturday as he wanted to see the hooting and clapping. But he was mobbed and had to climb on top of a Mahindra Thar (laughs)! Then, the security came, and everyone got a chance to meet him one by one. He was in a daze with the love he was getting.”
Vikas Dhar revealed, “I have rarely this kind of frenzy. The minute we opened the bookings for the Friday show, within 1 ½ hours, most of the tickets were sold out! It was unbelievable.”
He added, “We have limited followers for Inox Srinagar on Instagram. When we announced on our page that we are releasing Laila Majnu, it went completely ballistic! The views were in lakhs and most of them were from the rest of the country. They were asking, ‘Why only Srinagar? Humne kya galti ki hai’! The kind of response it has got in Srinagar, I am sure it’ll motivate PVR Inox to release it in the rest of India as well.”
He’s also happy that the Monday show is about to get full. He said, “Everyone told me that ‘Monday film dekhne koi nahin aayega’. At 2 pm on a Monday, everybody is working. Yet, it’s sold so many tickets. I, myself, am surprised. It’s not a happy thing but the new releases are playing with just 1 or 2 people in the hall. And both are big films. As for Laila Majnu, people I guess fear that Laila Majnu might be discontinued soon. Hence, they are rushing to see it.”
If the demand continues, does he expect Laila Majnu to play even after the release of three big Independence Day releases – Stree 2, Vedaa and Khel Khel Mein? He stated, “If that happens, it’ll be fantastic.”
He signed off by saying, “A girl told me that ‘she’s watching Laila Majnu twice a week for the last 6 years’. She couldn’t believe we put it on the big screen. It shows that a chance that OTT and cinema can move together.”
Also Read: 30 years of HAHK: Two dogs played the pet Tuffy in the Salman Khan-Madhuri Dixit starrer
More Pages: Laila Majnu Box Office Collection , Laila Majnu Movie Review
BOLLYWOOD NEWS – LIVE UPDATES
Catch us for latest Bollywood News, New Bollywood Movies update, Box office collection, New Movies Release , Bollywood News Hindi, Entertainment News, Bollywood Live News Today & Upcoming Movies 2024 and stay updated with latest hindi movies only on Bollywood Hungama.
Images are for reference only.Images and contents gathered automatic from google or 3rd party sources.All rights on the images and contents are with their legal original owners.
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.