Director John Mathew Matthan, whose second film "Shikhar" met with a poor response at the box office, is upset over the media attack on his film.

"A few leading publications tried to rip apart the film. One newspaper went to the extent of giving it half a star. It was like assassinating the film. It appeared to be a very calculated attempt to finish the film," Bollywood Trade quoted him as saying.

Trade pundits attribute the film's failure to its release date, Dec 31, but Matthan explains he had no option other than releasing it on the stipulated day.

"It was solely subject to theatre availability. I had earlier planned a Dec 16 release but I wasn't getting the theatre bookings," he informed.

There was talk that he was contemplating trimming the second half of the film after the first three days but Matthan denies it.

"A few of my friends in the trade did suggest that I edit the film but I felt it was a bit too late in the day to make changes," he said.

Meanwhile, his friends have suggested he seek tax-exemption for the film.

"I am in the process of applying for tax exemption. It could probably prove to be the silver lining for my film," he said.