‘Laal Singh Chaddha’, which starred Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Mona Singh and Naga Chaitanya, failed to perform at the box office when it was released in August this year.
The film, which was a remake of 1994 Tom Hanks’ starrer ‘Forrest Gump’, managed to earn only Rs 58.73 crore. It happened so because many people boycotted it on social media and trended an old interview of Aamir, in which the actor had talked about the “growing intolerance” in the country. However, when the film was released on Netflix, it found a new lease of life. It got appreciated by a certain section of the audience.
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In fact, Manav Vij, who essayed the role of a Pakistani soldier, found people apologising to him on Twitter for not watching ‘Laal Singh Chaddha’ in the cinema halls. But Manav is of the opinion that instead of apologies, people should send money to Aamir Khan’s production house because of the loss that it incurred due to the no-show in the theatres by the same set of people.
Speaking to Mid-Day while promoting his latest web show ‘Tanaav’, Manav said, “Many people also apologised to me on Twitter, saying they didn’t watch Laal Singh Chaddha in theatres following the boycott trend. But they loved it when they watched it on Netflix.” He even suggested that these people “should have transferred Rs 500 to Aamir Khan Productions’ account. The producers are at a loss because of your (people’s) stupidity.”
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The story of ‘Laal Singh Chaddha’ revolves around Aamir’s character Laal, who is depicted to be a man with a low IQ. He serves in the Indian army during the 1999 India-Pakistan war and ends up saving the life of Mohammed, played by Manav, unaware that he is a Pakistani soldier. The two become friends later. The film was helmed by Advait Chandan.
