Lal Singh Chaddha and Raksha Bandhan will clash at the box office
Commenting on the box office face-off with his film “Raksha Bandhan” Aamir Khan“Lal Singh Chaddha”, Akshay Kumar Said on Tuesday that it was “not a confrontation”, but rather two good films coming together. Both “Raksha Bandhan” and “Lal Singh Chaddha”, also starring Kareena Kapoor KhanAll set to release theatrically on August 11.
Kumar said it is “natural” to have two films releasing in the same week as many films are ready to hit the screens due to the delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s a big day. The film is releasing around the holidays, (the festival) Raksha Bandhan will be around. Due to COVID-19, there are a lot of films that are waiting to be released. Since there are so many films, it It is natural that two films are releasing in a week. It is not a clash, we are coming together, trying to take our films to the masses. I hope both the films do well,” The actor told reporters.
Kumar was speaking at the trailer launch of ‘Raksha Bandhan’ at the city’s prestigious single screen theater Daylight Cinema. Directed by Aanand L Rai, the film follows sweet shop owner Raju (Kumar), who is struggling for the marriage of his four younger sisters.
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The film stars Saadia Khatib, Sahajmeen Kaur, Deepika Khanna and Smriti Srikkanth as Kumar’s on-screen sisters. Describing ‘Raksha Bandhan’ as a film that offers a solution to dowry, Kumar said it is a conscious effort on his part to tell stories that not only solve a problem but also offer a way out of it.
He said, ‘Like, I did ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’, ‘Pad Man’. Similarly, in this film we are not only talking about dowry but also presenting a solution to the country and the world.
“With every film I want to deconstruct myself. I want to break my image and then do something else. My benchmark has always been to challenge myself. When I joined the industry, I would only do action. It took me a long time to come out of it (image),” he said.
Also with Kumar in the lead role of Bhumi Pednekar, the film was extensively shot in Chandni Chowk, New Delhi. Pednekar, who posts “Toilet: Ek Prem Katha” with Kumar, said “Raksha Bandhan” is a symbol of the “pure” bond shared by siblings.
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“My sister and I can’t imagine our lives without each other. We fight a lot over things like food, clothes or TV remotes, but also love each other a lot,” he said. Growing up in Chandni Chowk during his childhood, Kumar said shooting for the film in Delhi was like a ‘ghar wapsi’ for him.
“Even today, I sometimes go to our old house in Chandni Chowk to meet my maternal uncle at night quietly. I remember eating paranthas and Giani’s fruit cream from Parantha Wali Gali.”
The actor, who along with the film’s team launched the trailer at Daylight Cinema, said he has many memories attached to theatre.
“I have seen a lot of movies here. I remember watching ‘Amar Akbar Anthony’ here in black,” he recalled.
Asked about Agneepath, the new military recruitment scheme announced by the central government, Kumar said it was not a suitable forum to discuss the subject.
“Raksha Bandhan” marks Kumar and Rai’s second collaboration after 2021’s “Atrangi Re”.
Rai said that the film occupies an important place in his filmography, which includes hits such as “Raanjhanaa” and the “Tanu Weds Manu” series.
He quipped, “We had so much fun with this film that we didn’t even know when we had finished working on it. Akshay sir considered me as his elder brother, even though he is older than me.”
The filmmaker said screenwriter duo Himanshu Sharma and Kanika Dhillon have penned the screenplay keeping Kumar in mind.
Dhillon said that he wrote the film with a lot of heart and sincerity, with Sharma saying the film allowed him to reconnect with his childhood.
Khateeb, Kaur, Khanna and Srikkanth said that they are happy to be a part of ‘Raksha Bandhan’ and working in the film was a fun experience.
Himesh Reshammiya has composed the soundtrack of the film with songs by Irshad Kamil.
“Raksha Bandhan” is a Color Yellow production in association with Cape of Good Films.