Aditya Chopra blames Akshay Kumar for Samrat Prithviraj’s failure, ‘he wouldn’t even grow a real moustache’

The movie, directed by Chandraprakash Dwivedi, is set to release on Amazon Prime Video much earlier than was initially planned due to its poor box office run

Akshay Kumar in a still from Samrat Prithviraj

Seems like the camp of Samrat Prithviraj has turned against its lead actor Akshay Kumar after the big-budget historical war film’s poor box office run. After its director Chandraprakash Dwivedi recently said that he doesn’t agree with the actor’s remarks on history textbooks giving more importance to ‘foreign invaders’ than the country’s own kings, Aditya Chopra, the film’s producer, has now apparently come out strongly against the actor for lack of dedication during the movie.

The movie, which was reportedly made on a budget of Rs 300 crore, failed to cross even Rs 100 crore at the box office and is the second consecutive flop from the production house after Ranveer Singh’s Jayeshbhai Jordaar.

Also read: Samrat Prithviraj review: Incredible supporting performances overshadow Akshay Kumar’s iteration of the great warrior

The producer apparently is blaming Akshay for the film’s poor box office showing. A source from Yash Raj Films told National Herald that Aditya wasn’t happy with the actor’s commitment towards the film. Samrat Prithviraj required him to dedicate time to the film but Akshay “wouldn’t even grow a real moustache” as he was also doing other films simultaneously. The source asked that knowing it was a massive film, why didn’t Akshay just focus on Samrat Prithviraj alone.

Meanwhile, the film’s director Dwivedi owned up to the failure, saying that they failed to understand the mood of the film and that resulted in the movie’s content not connecting with the audience. Earlier this week, the filmmaker also weighed in on Akshay statement about textbooks not prioritising Indian kings.

Also read: Samrat Prithviraj director defends Akshay Kumar after its failure, ‘film wouldn’t have been made if not for him’

The director said that after the actor’s comments, the audience thought that the movie is a historical film. However, he said that Samrat Prithviraj is based on the poem Prithviraj Raso and its historial value has been long debated.

The movie, which also has Manushi Chillar, Sanjay Dutt and Sonu Sood, is currently scheduled to release on Amazon Prime Video on July 1.

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