DIWALI CRACKER

The two Shahenshahs of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan, will lock horns this Diwali at the box office. Shah Rukh starrer ‘Om Shanti Om’ and ‘Gangotri’ with Amitabh Bachchan in the lead are set to release on the same day during Diwali. It’s been long in news that ‘Om Shanti Om’ would release around Diwali and now producer of ‘Gangotri’, Deepak Sawant has decided to release his film on the same day. “I have no issues releasing it on the same day. Jaise Shah Rukhji ka naam hai waise Amit ji ka bhi naam hai. Amitji koi kam nahin,” says Sawant. “A multiplex can screen all three movies at the same time. It will be up to the audiences to watch the movie they like. If ‘Om Shanti Om’ and ‘Saawariya’ can run to packed theaters then the audience would definitely come to see my film or vice versa. This had happened when ‘Ganga’ was released. Theatres screening ‘Ganga’ were filled up first and then people saw ‘Don’,” says Sawant. Interestingly ‘Don’ and ‘Ganga’ were released during Diwali last year. Sawant had decided to go ahead with his plan to make the sequel in two languages as there were huge demands.“My film has audience from all sections of the society. But affluent people cannot go to theatres, which screen Bhojpuri films. I also found that people who speak other languages watched ‘Ganga’ too,” explains Sawant.It would be interesting to see, who wins the competition at the box office: Shah Rukh with his ‘Om Shanti Om’ or Amitabh Bachchan with ‘Gangotri’. Or will it be Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Saawariya’, playing the monkey as two cats fight!