Ajay Devgn wants the audience to talk about De De Pyaar De and not Alok Nath

Mumbai: Ajay Devgn’s latest release De De Pyaar De has opened to impressive figures at the box office on its very first day. The film is also enjoying a good word of mouth publicity due to its bold subject and this is exactly what Ajay Devgn wanted.

Soon after the release of the trailer, De De Pyaar De got embroiled in controversy due to the presence of #MeToo accused actor Alok Nath in it. Everybody started questioning why he has been cast in the movie, while Ajay explained that shoot was completed much before it (allegations against Alok Nath) happened. Ajay Devgn feels showing Alok Nath in the trailer was the right thing to do, so that now when the film has been released, everybody’s attention will be on the film and people will talk about the film instead of the actor. 

During an interaction with My Nation, the actor said, “Why should we hide it? If people would have discovered him in the film after watching it, then instead of them discussing the film, the topic would have become this. Might as well get it over with. What we had spoken earlier is a fact. People ask the same questions again. Now, I am going to do more interviews. Now if somebody asks me, at least I can tell them that I have issued a full-page statement on the same, please read it. So, I don’t have to keep answering the same thing again and again.”

When told that despite him releasing a statement on the matter, #MeToo flag-bearer Tanushree Dutta and Kangana Ranaut’s sister Rangoli have opened up against him, the actor replied, “Everybody has their own mind I can’t say anything. I have given my statement, and I will stick to it. You want to believe it, you believe it, if you don’t want to believe it, then don’t believe it. I can’t force anybody.”

The actor plays a 50-year-old man in the movie and only last month he himself turned 50. Talking about playing his real age in the film, Ajay expressed, “Nobody is shying away now. You know everybody’s age. At least my contemporaries, who are my colleagues, they are all open, they talk about their age very openly, we discuss it in public also. Salman is playing an old man in Bharat.” He added, “The audience has changed and evolved with time. They have also realised that 50 is nothing. Physically also, because people have become health conscious and we know what are the do’s and don’ts. We all know that. So, what people used to start feeling at 40, you don’t feel till 60 these days. If you keep taking care of yourself, then you will be fine.”

The actor, who is seen dating a woman half his age in the film (played by Rakul Preet Singh), believes that even though society has become more accepting to relationships with a huge age gap, still people talk about it just for the sake of gossip. Ajay said, “It (relationships with an age gap) always used to happen but for the sake of gossip people used to talk about it. People still talk about it. Even if someone is having an affair with another person of the same age group, people will talk about it. So, age has nothing got to do here. People will keep talking.”

De De Pyaar De has been directed by editor turned director Akiv Ali, who debuts as a director with the movie. The film which released yesterday also stars Tabu and Rakul Preet Singh in the lead.