Will Imran Khan get third time lucky?

The release date of Imran Khan’s Delhi Belly has been fixed for July 1. Interestingly, this will be Imran’s third film to release on the first Friday of July. The earlier two were his debut film, Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Naa (July 4, 2008), and I Hate Luv Storys (July 2, 2010).



Our industry folk are known to be superstitious and Aamir Khan Productions too seems to be playing safe with a lucky week. The uncle-nephew duo are hoping to cash in with a hit hat-trick, never mind if Delhi Belly is an urban comedy about three friends living in Delhi as against the earlier two rom coms.

The actor- filmmaker was unavailable for comment, but his spokesperson maintained, "Delhi Belly is essentially a youth movie, and colleges open in the first week of July."



Imran insists that he’s not superstitious either. "Aamir as the producer fixed on the release date of Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Naa and Karan Johar took the call on I Hate Luv Storys (IHLS)," he maintains. "Yes, it is a very good weekend for films catering to the youth."

The shooting was completed last year. It’s taking a while for the film to reach the theatres? “That’s how Aamir works. Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Naa was in the cans for a year-and-a-half. After 3 Idiots, Aamir completed Peepli Live, then Dhobi Ghat and now it’s Delhi Belly’s turn,” says an unfazed Imran. “We knew what we were doing from the beginning and stuck to the unconventional subject and treatment. I can’t predict box-office collections but I can say that Delhi Belly is a very good film.”

Would he have done it if his uncle was not producing it? “More than a dozen producers had rejected it saying its commercial viability was doubtful. Eventually, it landed with Aamir Khan Productions. I knew I had to do it as soon as I heard the script,” he reminisces, hoping that after Jaane Tu.. catapulted him to stardom and I Hate Luv Storys helped him consolidate his position, the first Friday of July will prove third time lucky for him again.