With the unfortunate outbreak of Swine Flu in Mumbai and Pune, the government has closed all cinemas in both cities to prevent any further spread of the disease. In the bargain, the two biggies that were set to release, Kaminey and Life Partner will not be screened until the ban is lifted by the government. They will however continue to be screened all over the rest of the country as well as overseas. And while the producers are afraid of the video piracy which has become a dreaded problem in the industry, they are willing to abide with the governments choice to close the cinemas until further notice.
The team of Kaminey claims that they completely understand the situation at hand and will obey the government’s decision. According to UTV’s Siddharth Roy Kapur, “Business won’t be that badly affected as it will be only for a day and with no big releases coming up next week we are hoping that business will pick up from August 14-18. We are insured in the long run against such events like these and though it’s definitely a concern that people will avoid theatres for some time we are very confident that the entire issue will resolve in the next few weeks and people will go back to the theatres soon.” Shahid Kapoor went on to add that he “respects” the government’s decision and hopes that by Sunday, “Everything will go back to normal in Mumbai and Pune.”
Tusshar Kapur clearly showed signs of unhappiness with the government’s decision, “We have lots of careers riding on these films. A part of me is worried that business will be affected because of the swine flu but I also know those who will want to go to watch films will go at any cost. Let’s take all the precautionary measures but not spread panic and hype the whole thing. I am sure the government knows what it is doing. I haven’t started wearing a mask at public places or taking other precautions but maybe from today when I go to temples and theatres I will but I won’t stop going out. I have to live my life.” Co-star Fardeen Khan however believes the film will do well even after the Swine Flu panic wears out, “Life Partner has shaped up to be a thoroughly enjoyable film for one and all. I would like people to watch it and enjoy it free of stress only when the Department of Public Health says it is safe for people to be in public places again.”
