The release date of Ram Gopal Varma's Rann has now been pushed ahead to avoid a clash with Anil Sharma's Veer. Both the films were scheduled to release on January 22, next year but now Veer will release on January 22, while Rann will hit screens a week later.

Apparently, Sharma called up Sheetal Talwar, co-producer of Rann, explaining why and how a clash between the two films must be averted.

"I saw reason in what Anil Sharma said. There's no sense in creating a no-win situation for two films. See, when Gadar - Ek Prem Katha and Lagaan came together, things were different. But now audiences are in no mood to buy tickets for two big films in the same week," Talwar told IANS.

It was said to be a clash of patriotic passion when Sharma's Gadar and Ashutosh Gowariker's Lagaan were released on June 15, 2001. Both proved to be historic blockbusters.

Sharma sees his latest offering Veer, which is set in colonial India, as a patriotic period film. While Varma's Rann, set in the modern world of media manipulation, is perceived by its makers as a comment on our times and hence patriotic.

Rann has Amitabh Bachchan in pivotal role, while Salman Khan plays main lead in Veer.

The people behind both films were adamant on same day release, but now Talwar says: "There's no point in creating an ego issue by insisting we release Rann on the same day as Veer. One or the other film is bound to suffer at the box office. Why not release a week later when we get a relatively free Friday?"