'We got saved': Aamir Khan on 'Laal Singh Chaddha' averting clash with 'KGF: Chapter 2'

Mumbai, Jul 26 (PTI) Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan says the delay in post-production of "Laal Singh Chaddha" was a blessing in disguise for his upcoming film, which would have clashed with the blockbuster movie "KGF: Chapter 2" had it arrived earlier this year.

During a special event of "Laal Singh Chaddha" in Hyderabad on Sunday, Khan opened up about the averted clash and said the film got "saved".

"I remember when 'KGF 2' was about to release, there was a lot of excitement among the Hindi audience, amongst my own friends.

"'Laal Singh Chaddha' was supposed to release on that day. But fortunately for us, Red Chillies was taking a little time on the VFX so we got saved! Otherwise, we would have come with 'KGF 2'," Khan told reporters.

"Laal Singh Chaddha", the Hindi adaptation of the 1994 Tom Hanks-starrer "Forrest Gump", was earlier slated to be released alongside "KGF: Chapter 2", the Kannada action drama headlined by Yash, on April 14.

"Laal Singh Chaddha" postponed its release owing to delay in visual effects (VFX) work and "KGF: Chapter 2" set the box office on fire with an opening of more than Rs 53 crore, emerging as one of the biggest hits of Indian cinema in 2022. The Prashanth Neel directorial ended its lifetime domestic run at Rs 434 crore.

At the event, Khan was joined by Chiranjeevi, who is presenting the Telugu version of "Laal Singh Chaddha" and Naga Chaitanya, who stars in the film in a key role.

From "Pushpa: The Rise", S S Rajamouli's "RRR" to "KGF: Chapter 2", Khan said it was heartening to see the pan-India success of south films.

"'KGF 2' is a Kannada film, there is 'Pushpa', 'Baahubali', 'RRR' (all Telugu)... All these films have come from the south of India and have won the hearts of audiences across the country...

"It is wonderful to see that cinema coming out of one state of India can successfully give joy and entertainment to the whole country. That's really a celebration for us when that happens," he added.

Directed by Advait Chandan and also starring Kareena Kapoor Khan, "Laal Singh Chaddha" is scheduled to be released on August 11. The film will have a box office clash with "Raksha Bandhan", headlined by Akshay Kumar.