Pari pushed to March after release date clashes

It seems like the snowball effect of Padmaavat’s being postponed continues. After Neeraj Pandey’s Aiyaari shifted from January 25 to February 9 — since Padmaavat now releases a day prior to Republic Day — another movie’s moving dates are also being pushed. Anushka Sharma and Prernaa Arora’s supernatural film Pari, which was to open on February 9, will now release on March 2.

Speaking about the shift, Prernaa says, “We have absolutely no ego problems in accommodating other films’ releases, even if it means we have to move our dates. It’s fine. Success and failure doesn’t depend on when you release, but the quality of your product.”

She goes on to add, “Due to the repeated delay in Padmaavat’s release, there’s a bottleneck of releases. If Aiyaari has shifted from January 25 to February 9, and there’s Luv Ranjan’s Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety already scheduled for February 9, we have no problems in moving ahead. The Holi week is a fabulous time to release a good film. And Anushka and I believe we have a very special film in Pari. It will be her first release after marriage, and therefore doubly special. We don’t want to spoil it by releasing alongside a tumble of other movies.”

Regarding Pad Man, of which she is co-producer, Prernaa explains, “We’re going ahead with the release, alongside Padmaavat on January 25. It’s a holiday weekend, and therefore big enough to accommodate two big movies. We’re confident that both films will find their audiences.”

However, she is quick to point out that Padmaavat’s release date has not officially been announced just yet. “We are going on kahi-suni baatein (hearsay). I haven’t seen any official announcement about January 25 yet. But whenever Padmaavat does release, we will be happy to see its smooth release and success. Let’s remember, what has happened with Padmaavat, can happen to any one of us. Let’s work as one big family in this industry. It’s the only way we can fight the attacks from the outside,” she asserts.