'Ikkis' requires space in theatres; lucky we're getting solo release: producer Dinesh Vijan

Mumbai, Dec 19 (PTI) Filmmaker Dinesh Vijay says it was a conscious decision to move the release date of "Ikkis" by a week as he felt the much-anticipated war drama requires space to breathe in theatres.

The film, based on the life of youngest Param Vir Chakra recipient Arun Khetrpal, was earlier slated to release on December 25 but it will now arrive in theatres on January 1, next year.

On Christmas, the film would have clashed with Kartik Aaryan and Ananya Panday’s “Tu Meri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri”. Ranveer Singh-starrer “Dhurandhar” is enjoying a good run in cinema halls since its release on December 5, and James Cameron’s “Avatar: Fire and Ash” just released.

The Maddock Films honcho said it was a good decision to postpone the release of the movie, directed by Sriram Raghavan and starring Agastya Nanda, Amitabh Bachchan's grandson, by a week.

"I feel you should make a decision that is good for everyone, and that will help you as well. It's a film that requires space. We are lucky that we're getting a solo date at the beginning of the year. This happened with 'Chhaava' and 'Pushpa' also, it happened with 'Hindi medium' movies. This is kind of not to have clutter.

"In the new year, we're also ready to watch a good film. We get a run. So, it works overall for the business because all the films get space to breathe. It's not like there's a film there, we get a solo release. So, when god is giving, take it," Vijan said while responding to a question posed by PTI during a media interaction. The film narrates the story of Khetarpal, a second Lieutenant, who was martyred at the age of 21 during the Battle of Basantar in the 1971 Indo-Pak war. It also stars Jaideep Ahlawat and features late star Dharmendra in his last screen appearance.

"It's a unique war because it will make you feel proud and patriotic, about victory and war. Along with this, it's about what happens to the family after, emotionally. I don't think we've ever seen emotional loss. It impacts you,” Vijan said.

Asked about balancing the thin line between patriotism and jingoism in a war film like “Ikkis”, Raghavan gave the example of two films of Hollywood actor-director Clint Eastwood: “Flags of Our Fathers” and “Letters from Iwo Jima”, both of which, he said, portrayed the Battle of Iwo Jima from American and Japanese viewpoints.

“So, everyone has families and it’s not that the other soldier doesn't have a family. It's about humanity, it’s not about the enemy and it's about what soldiers go through in a war wherever you're from. We are talking about conventional war,” Raghavan said.

Vijan said he admires the way Raghavan, known as the master of thriller genre with movies such as "Ek Haseena Thi", "Johnny Gaddar" and "Andhadhun", has shown a different side of patriotism in “Ikkis”.

"Sriram Raghavan will always give you a new experience. It is a patriotic film, he (Nanda) is screaming out of his lungs and saying, 'I'll not abandon my tank as my gun is still working’. But the way he is performing, and the tone, you actually believe him.

"Sriram had told me once in the last half-an-hour of the film that every time he goes inside, you feel he is underwater and he is trying to come up. I feel when you watch it you will realize this. War is something we've not experienced in this way.” PTI KKP BK BK