Convinced that Antim is meant for big-screen experience, director Manjrekar hopes Maharashtra theatres reopen by October as he eyes festival outing for Salman-starrer
Salman Khan and Aayush Sharma in Antim: The Final Truth
The idea of Antim: The Final Truth playing out on a laptop screen is inconceivable to director Mahesh Manjrekar. He is of the firm opinion that the actioner, which sees Salman Khan in his element as a no-nonsense honest cop who locks horns with Aayush Sharma’s gangster, can only be done justice to on the big screen. The director reveals he is eyeing a festival release, as he says, “Antim is a film meant for the theatres. If cinemas open in Maharashtra by October — and it’s high time they did — we are planning to release Antim on Diwali. It is a film that [is targeted at the] Maharashtra territory.”
The original material — the Marathi hit, Mulshi Pattern (2018) — had found favour among the single-screen audience, and Manjrekar says his adaptation too is designed for the masses. “We are not thinking of releasing it on OTT platforms right now. The middle-class and lower-middle class audiences make films super hits by going to the theatres. This movie represents them, so I know it will do well in cinemas.”
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Mahesh Manjrekar
While movie halls have reopened across several states, the Maharashtra government appears to be wary of the move. This hasn’t gone down well with a section of the film fraternity. “I feel silly when I see crowded trains, buses, and marketplaces. Why are theatres continuing to remain shut? There are so many daily-wage earners whose livelihood depends on cinema, not to mention the staff at the theatres. If this goes on for long, the single-screen cinemas will have to close down,” rues, Manjrekar, before adding emphatically for effect, “I will stage a dharna if theatres are not opened soon.”
The movie, also starring Pragya Jaiswal, marks the director’s first collaboration with Khan. “I told Salman, ‘Don’t act, just let go’. He has become the character. Aayush too has done an exceptional job. When Salman approached me to direct the film, I was as excited about it as I was when I helmed Vaastav [1999].”
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