Current box office king Akshay Kumar on how he hates the word ‘clash’
Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; August 16, 2016)

Akshay Kumar continues his dream run at the box office with Rustom, his third film of 2016 also proving to be a hit with cinegoers. The thriller has grossed Rs 50.42 crore in its three-day run, beating Hrithik Roshan’s Mohenjo Daro by a cool margin of Rs 20 crore.

Ask Akshay about being the boss of the box office and how the clash worked in his favour, he shrugs and says, “I hate the word ‘clash’. I want everybody’s film to work because everybody works hard. Hrithik is yet to congratulate me, but he will always remain my neighbour. We will continue to hang out and dine together. My equation with Hrithik won’t change just because our movies released together. I haven’t seen Mohenjo Daro yet. If I get time, I will definitely watch it.”

Before the box office clash, er, competition, a majority of industry folk had shown support to the action star’s film, clearly indicating who had the upper hand. “It was interesting to see that actors who have not worked with me promoted it [Rustom] on Twitter and it worked for the film. I feel this trend should continue. I was quite nervous before the release because you never know how the audience will react. Two to three scripts come to me everyday, but you get good ones only if you are lucky,” he smiles.

Rustom, according to trade pundits, will breach the R 100-crore mark, making it his third century (after Airlift and Housefull 3) on the trot this year. But, Akshay says he doesn’t take success seriously. “Today, my films are doing well, tomorrow, they may not. Like recently, someone reminded me of 14 flops that I have delivered,” he says.

Akshay will soon begin shooting the second schedule of Jolly LLB 2, but assures that his other project, Vipul Shah’s Namastey England, is also on track. The film was supposed to go on floors last April, but has been delayed with reports suggesting that the actor wants changes in the script. However, he says. “There is no delay. The script is yet to be locked. So, we will start it only when the script is ready.” He also dissed rumours about being part of Aankhen 2. “I am not even aware of a sequel,” he signs off.