Actress Zareen Khan says VEER, featuring superstar Salman Khan, was a dream debut for her.

"Salman is somebody who will always be very dear, special and very close to my heart because if not for him, I had never thought of becoming a part of this industry. I would have never been a part of this industry because this was not my plan and now I am here. The debut I got was a dream debut for me," Zareen told IANS over phone from Mumbai.

The actress, 30, worked with the DABANGG star in READY too. She remains grateful to him.

"I know a lot of people who grow up with a dream of becoming an actor and leave their homes and come to Bombay (Mumbai) with this dream of fulfilling this passion. But unfortunately, this dream of theirs is never fulfilled… Salman is somebody whom I always respect. I am very thankful to him… He has already done a lot for me," she added.

Zareen's latest film is 1921, and she will be seen in the role of a police officer in ONE DAY.

Actress Zareen Khan says VEER, featuring superstar Salman Khan, was a dream debut for her.

"Salman is somebody who will always be very dear, special and very close to my heart because if not for him, I had never thought of becoming a part of this industry. I would have never been a part of this industry because this was not my plan and now I am here. The debut I got was a dream debut for me," Zareen told IANS over phone from Mumbai.

The actress, 30, worked with the DABANGG star in READY too. She remains grateful to him.

"I know a lot of people who grow up with a dream of becoming an actor and leave their homes and come to Bombay (Mumbai) with this dream of fulfilling this passion. But unfortunately, this dream of theirs is never fulfilled… Salman is somebody whom I always respect. I am very thankful to him… He has already done a lot for me," she added.

Zareen's latest film is 1921, and she will be seen in the role of a police officer in ONE DAY.

The new releases of the week Arbaaz-Ashmit’s NIRDOSH, Kay Kay Menon’s VODKA DAIRIES as well as MY BIRTHDAY SONG saw a dull start at the ticket window. In fact contrary to expectations it was Samir Soni’s MY BIRTHDAY SONG which saw the best response and may well turn out to be the best over the weekend.

Checking out the three releases of last week Cinestaan Film Company’s KAALAKAANDI, Anurag Kashyap directed MUKKABAAZ and Vikram Bhatt’s 1921 it was the Zareen Khan starrer which surprised with a 12 crore haul! The other two releases were well below the mark with MUKKABAAZ managing 7 crore and Saif Ali Khan’s KAALAKAANDI netting barely 5 crore! It is but obvious that from the three, 1921 is the only film that can harbor some hopes of a recovery.

Concluding with YRF’s Ali Abbas Zafar directed Salman-Katrina starrer TIGER ZINDA HAI the film managed to growl again by adding 11 crore, thus netting 331 crore in four weeks from India and may just about manage to get near to Aamir Khan’s PK(335-336).

Prernaa Arora, the co-producer of Bollywood movie PAD MAN, has hailed Akshay Kumar's decision to defer the film's release.

On Friday evening, Akshay Kumar, together with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, announced the postponement of PAD MAN, so that Bhansali's PADMAAVAT can get a solo release.

"Akshay's entire team is with him on this decision," his co-producer Prernaa Arora of Kriarj Films said.

"What Akshay Sir did on Friday evening is unheard of. Just a week before our film's release, without any prior intimation, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, a legend in his own right, came to Akshay requesting that we postpone PAD MAN," she said.

"It takes a lot of humility for a man of Bhansali's stature to come forward with such a request. It takes an equally great artiste to agree to such a startling request," Arora said.

"It was a very unusual request considering we were days away from release. But Akshay agreed immediately. It says a lot about his generous heart," she added.

Prernaa also scoffs at filmmakers and producers who deliberately pitch their films against one another.

"They should learn from this experience. By moving ahead by two weeks at the last minute, Akshay Sir has shown there can be solidarity in the film fraternity. His gesture will be remembered for a very long time," she said.

The entire PAD MAN team is with Akshay on this issue.

"We are all in agreement on Akshay Sir's decision. There are so many big stars who deliberately look for box office clashes by pitching their films against other big films. Akshay Sir has shown the way to a peaceful co-existence in the film industry."

[By Subhash K. Jha]

Prernaa Arora, the co-producer of Bollywood movie PAD MAN, has hailed Akshay Kumar's decision to defer the film's release.

On Friday evening, Akshay Kumar, together with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, announced the postponement of PAD MAN, so that Bhansali's PADMAAVAT can get a solo release.

"Akshay's entire team is with him on this decision," his co-producer Prernaa Arora of Kriarj Films said.

"What Akshay Sir did on Friday evening is unheard of. Just a week before our film's release, without any prior intimation, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, a legend in his own right, came to Akshay requesting that we postpone PAD MAN," she said.

"It takes a lot of humility for a man of Bhansali's stature to come forward with such a request. It takes an equally great artiste to agree to such a startling request," Arora said.

"It was a very unusual request considering we were days away from release. But Akshay agreed immediately. It says a lot about his generous heart," she added.

Prernaa also scoffs at filmmakers and producers who deliberately pitch their films against one another.

"They should learn from this experience. By moving ahead by two weeks at the last minute, Akshay Sir has shown there can be solidarity in the film fraternity. His gesture will be remembered for a very long time," she said.

The entire PAD MAN team is with Akshay on this issue.

"We are all in agreement on Akshay Sir's decision. There are so many big stars who deliberately look for box office clashes by pitching their films against other big films. Akshay Sir has shown the way to a peaceful co-existence in the film industry."

[By Subhash K. Jha]

As the Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar rescheduled the release of his upcoming film PAD MAN to avoid its clash with the much-awaited magnum opus of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's PADMAAVAT, trend analysts said the decision will help both movies in terms of box office numbers.

On Friday evening, Akshay, along with Bhansali, announced at a press conference the decision to shift the release date of his film from January 25 to February 9, "so that PADMAAVAT can get a solo release".

Akshay said: "At the moment, stakes of PADMAAVAT are very high. SLB is a dear friend. We can come out together but their need is greater. I can understand what he is going through."

Asked if such changes would affect the box office prospects, trend analyst Komal Nahata told IANS: "The shift of release date helps optimise the numbers at the box office. Since there is a window of two weeks, the films will not cut into each other's business."

Agreeing with Nahata, another trend analyst Atul Mohan said: "Clash of two big films is never welcome, because both films suffer at the box office. So yes, it is a good decision, a wise one."

Nahata added: "If we look at the whole issue from the viewpoint of exhibitors, they are better placed now. Comparing two films, 'Padmaavat' would have been the first choice of any exhibitor and not 'Pad Man'.

"So, I see the decision of rescheduling the release as a positive change for PAD MAN from the box office collection point of view."

On the other hand, the release date of Neeraj Pandey's AIYAARI, starring Siddharth Malhotra and Manoj Vajpayee, which was earlier scheduled to reach the public on January 25, had been shifted to February 9, to avoid the clash with PAD MAN.

But now, AIYAARI will not only clash with PAD MAN but also with SONU KE TITU KI SWEETY releasing the same day.

Now that "Pad Man' is releasing on February 9, will it not suffer due to the clash with PAD MAN and SONU KE TITU KI SWEETY?

"Yes," said Mohan. "It will suffer and that is really unfortunate because 'Ayaari' first revealed their release date and then PAD MAN came. Though I see no reason not to announce the date in advance, because the whole marketing and promotion of the film work around it, one should be very careful about choosing a release date."

"Also, after the release of the trailer of a film, one cannot delay the release more than a month because of two reasons — firstly, the audience loses interest in watching it unless it is a 'Khan' film, and secondly, it loses the freshness and relevance," he explained.

As the Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar rescheduled the release of his upcoming film PAD MAN to avoid its clash with the much-awaited magnum opus of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's PADMAAVAT, trend analysts said the decision will help both movies in terms of box office numbers.

On Friday evening, Akshay, along with Bhansali, announced at a press conference the decision to shift the release date of his film from January 25 to February 9, "so that PADMAAVAT can get a solo release".

Akshay said: "At the moment, stakes of PADMAAVAT are very high. SLB is a dear friend. We can come out together but their need is greater. I can understand what he is going through."

Asked if such changes would affect the box office prospects, trend analyst Komal Nahata told IANS: "The shift of release date helps optimise the numbers at the box office. Since there is a window of two weeks, the films will not cut into each other's business."

Agreeing with Nahata, another trend analyst Atul Mohan said: "Clash of two big films is never welcome, because both films suffer at the box office. So yes, it is a good decision, a wise one."

Nahata added: "If we look at the whole issue from the viewpoint of exhibitors, they are better placed now. Comparing two films, 'Padmaavat' would have been the first choice of any exhibitor and not 'Pad Man'.

"So, I see the decision of rescheduling the release as a positive change for PAD MAN from the box office collection point of view."

On the other hand, the release date of Neeraj Pandey's AIYAARI, starring Siddharth Malhotra and Manoj Vajpayee, which was earlier scheduled to reach the public on January 25, had been shifted to February 9, to avoid the clash with PAD MAN.

But now, AIYAARI will not only clash with PAD MAN but also with SONU KE TITU KI SWEETY releasing the same day.

Now that "Pad Man' is releasing on February 9, will it not suffer due to the clash with PAD MAN and SONU KE TITU KI SWEETY?

"Yes," said Mohan. "It will suffer and that is really unfortunate because 'Ayaari' first revealed their release date and then PAD MAN came. Though I see no reason not to announce the date in advance, because the whole marketing and promotion of the film work around it, one should be very careful about choosing a release date."

"Also, after the release of the trailer of a film, one cannot delay the release more than a month because of two reasons — firstly, the audience loses interest in watching it unless it is a 'Khan' film, and secondly, it loses the freshness and relevance," he explained.