The footage of Sunny Deol-starrer 'Mohalla Assi' has been leaked online, compounding the woes of the makers, who are already struggling to secure a theatrical release as the Delhi High Court has issued a stay order on it. The film's trailer had also made its way to the e-zone before due date and the use of "abusive language" led a Delhi resident to seek a stay on the release.
The makers have now registered a case with the cyber crime cell to find out the source of the leak. Vinay Tiwari, producer of the film, says, "It seems someone from Varanasi had the entire movie stored in his pen drive. As soon as we realised it has been leaked on some websites, we requested them to remove it. We have filed a case with the cops here in Oshiwara and Varanasi against the unknown culprit."
It was only last week that Ketan Mehta's 'Manjhi: The Mountain Man' was leaked online, a fortnight before its scheduled release. Admitting that such incidents are detrimental to a film's prospects, Tiwari says his film is just about two-hour long while the footage available online plays over two hours and 34 minutes.
"It also shows a Censor certificate attached to it, something that I am yet to obtain. Some people have downloaded and seen it, but we have managed to take it off from most websites. It could have been uploaded by a crew member since a lot of people are involved during the shooting and post production stages," he adds. The makers are hopeful that the court does not extend the stay order beyond August 25 and that they are able to announce the release date soon.
