Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; April 16, 2016)

A lot depends on 'Mohenjo Daro' for Hrithik Roshan. His last film, 'Bang Bang' (2014), didn’t really create ripples in the box office and now he needs to be extra careful with his choices if he has to find his foothold back in the industry. 'Mohenjo Daro', directed by Ashutosh Gowariker, is slated to release on August 12.

This is considered a good day for release because that Friday leads to a long weekend for office-goers as Independence Day falls on Monday. Gowariker and Roshan were keen on that date, but there was a hitch. Akshay Kumar’s 'Rustom' is also slated to release on the same day. Knowing Akki’s recent box office record, one wouldn’t be surprised to know that this made the Mohenjo Daro team restless. Akshay’s film releasing on the same day will definitely eat into Mohenjo Daro’s business.

Hrithik is said to have decided to take matters into his own hand and he made a quick visit to Akshay’s house. Incidentally, the two stars live in the same building in Juhu.

A source says, “Hrithik approached Akshay just before he was supposed to fly to London for a shoot. Akshay heard him out and told him that he will get back to him on that.”

Another source says that Akki might have decided to help Hrithik and has already consulted his producers and they might release 'Rustom' a week in advance.”

Hrithik’s spokesperson and co-producer of 'Rustom', Neeraj Pandey remained unavailable for comment. Akshay’s spokesperson says, “Akshay is out of the country for over a month so we are not aware about his meeting with Hrithik.”