Ajay Devgn has thrown his weight behind the upcoming film, Parched, as a producer. The film, starring Radhika Apte, Tannishtha Chatterjee and Surveen Chawla, has already won numerous awards at international film festivals till now, and will release in India on September 23. When asked about releasing the film in India after having showcased it all over the world, Ajay said, “It’s sad that we had to start off with the film around the world instead of our own country. But that’s because there are audiences that accept such films abroad.” Ajay was speaking at a press conference about the movie, and he added, “After travelling all over, when the film has finally come here, we feel that it will definitely be accepted in India. The myth that only typical commercial films succeed has been broken by the audiences; we’ve been trying for it.”
Ajay, who has featured in a number of non-commercial movies, like Raincoat, also said that showcasing films like Parched in festivals is important to promote and raise awareness about them. Parched talks about various women-related issues like domestic abuse and violence against women. However, Ajay says that more than women, the film is for men, so that they can learn from it.
A steamy scene from the movie, which starred Radhika and Adil Hussain, had gone viral earlier. Ajay chose to avoid a query based on the scene being a part of the film for Indian audiences. He said that there were no issues with the censor board and the makers’ request for an A certificate was accepted by the board. During the event, Ajay also refused to comment, not only about the Kamaal R Khan audio tape controversy, but also about his next movie Shivaay, clashing with Karan Johar’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil.
