Bollywood film ‘Chehre’, starring Emraan Hashmi, Amitabh Bachchan and Rhea Chakraborty, will delay its April 9 release due to the rising COVID-19 cases in India. A new date is yet to be finalised or revealed.
Actor Hashmi tweeted the decision saying: “Due to the rising cases of COVID-19 and new guidelines for cinemas, we are unable to release our movie ‘Chehre’ on 9th April and have decided to postpone until further notice ... We have decided to bring ‘Chehre’ to audiences theatrically when the environment is more conducive for the experience. See you in cinemas very soon, until then stay safe and healthy!”
‘Chehre’ is a murder mystery directed by Rumi Jafry and Hashmi plays a business tycoon in the film.
This Bollywood project is one of the many casualties stemming from the global pandemic which saw cinemas in India and filming temporarily halted to curb the outbreak.
In the last few weeks, films such as ‘Roohi’ and ‘Saina’ have enjoyed a theatrical release, but industry insiders are still wary about releasing films in theatres as many still fear going out due to the COVID-19 spread.
‘Chehre’ also ran into controversy when Chakraborty’s absence was brought up during the film’s promotions. Chakraborty has been in the news for her alleged involvement in Sushant Singh Rajput’s death investigation. But producer of ‘Chehre’ Ashok Pandit addressed those rumours of leaving her out deliberately.
“Tell me, whose film is it? It’s Mr Bachchan and Emraan’s film. So, my focus has to be on them. Then there are other artistes. My focus cannot be on the other artistes. My focus has to be on my lead actors. That’s one. So, I cannot promote my smaller artistes,” Pandit told Indian Express.
