'Cheat India' release preponed to January 18 to avoid clash with 'Thackeray'

Producer Bhushan Kumar Friday announced that the release of his upcoming production "Cheat India" has been preponed to January 18 to avoid a clash with "Thackeray".

"Cheat India" was earlier scheduled to come out on January 25 alongside "Thackeray", which features Nawazuddin Siddiqui as late Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray.

Kumar made the announcement at a press conference here.

He denied that there was any pressure from the party to move the film from its initial release date of January 25 and said the decision was taken out of respect towards Bal Thackeray.

"There was no pressure. We have not shifted the release date due to any pressure or out of any ego. We did it because it made business sense and out of respect for Balasaheb Thackeray," Kumar told reporters here at the press conference of "Cheat India".

The producer was accompanied by actor Emraan Hashmi and Shiv Sena leaders Sanjay Raut and Aditya Thackeray.

"From producer's point of view, I feel we should not keep any ego. We had shifted 'Hindi Medium' and we had preponed 'Aashiqui 2' by two weeks. We did it because we wanted to give justice to our film. We did not want to fight.

"We are confident about our upcoming film. It is a content-driven film. To give the film its due it needed a clear week," Kumar said.

Emraan said he was aware of media reports regarding the decision to prepone the release.

"We had a release date for our film 'Cheat India' as January 25 and we have decided to prepone it to January 18. There are a couple of reasons for it. We felt our film is very special film, it is a high-concept film. It is a subject never done before," the actor said.

Aditya Thackeray, who also has been associated with the makers of "Cheat India" in providing inputs for the film, says he is attached with both the movies.

"I'm a friend of producer Atul Kasbekar. He had decided earlier there will be no clash between the two films. Both are content-driven stories, they are true stories," Aditya said.

Kangana Ranaut starrer "Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi" is also releasing on January 25 and when asked if its release will affect "Thackeray", Raut said, "I have not thought about it. I feel the name Thackeray is enough. Everyone has right to show their own film. We have not told anyone to change the date."
When Emraan was asked to comment on the controversy surrounding veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah, who had recently said that the death of a cow was being given importance over the killing of a policeman, he said, "What I am thinking right now I can say. I think there is freedom of speech in our country."