‘It took 15 years to land Laila Majnu, but it was removed from theatres in 3 days,’ Avinash Tiwary on his struggle post debut

Avinash shared that he avoided dropping his photos or portfolios in studios because he knew they would likely be discarded. “People would have portfolios in New York, and they would be thrown in trash cans for some reason. So, I used to make DVDs and go to Famous Studios to show them how I look on screen. Films were what I wanted to do, but they seemed so far away,” he said.

However, after going from one studio to another for 15 years, when Avinash finally bagged Laila Majnu, the outcome wasn’t what he had expected. “Fifteen years it took me to just get that one film. I was exhausted because I didn’t know what to do after this. I worked for three years on the film, and it got removed from theatres within three days. I didn’t know what to do. ‘Should I try for one more film?’ This is when you realize this is a game,” he shared.

Though Laila Majnu failed at the box office during its original release, the film developed a huge fan following once it arrived on OTT. Six years later, it made a successful return to the big screen with its re-release, earning more than three times its original box office collection of Rs 3.25 crore gross. According to Sacnilk, the film minted Rs 8.85 crore during its re-release.