Jr NTR’s `Devara Part 1’ prerelease event canceled due to overcrowding, ruckus at Novotel HICC

Hyderabad: The highly anticipated pre-release event of Jr NTR’s `Devara Part 1’ has been canceled due to overcrowding at the Novotel HICC, Hyderabad on Sunday.

Directed by Koratala Siva, the movie featuring Janhvi Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan, Prakash Raj, Srikanth, Sruthi Marthe, Narain, Kalaiarasan, and Shine Tom Chacko is scheduled for release on September 27 in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada languages.

Jr NTR supporters went crazy at the pre-release event venue causing a state of mayhem. It prompted police to advise the organizers and call off the event. Many fans expressed their anger over the arrangements and destroyed furniture and other equipment. Videos and images of people appearing dejected as the producers canceled the highly anticipated pre-release event went viral over social media.

Since Jr NTR's film is finally being released on screens after more than five years, the fans went crazy and large crowds from various parts of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka thronged the venue. With things getting out of control, the police and organizers advised Jr NTR not to attend the venue due to the overwhelming presence of fans attempting to access the auditorium from all sides.

Jr NTR expressed his disappointment over the cancellation of Devara's pre-release event.

In a video message to fans, the actor said, "I am deeply saddened that Devara's event has been canceled. I was looking forward to it. I enjoy spending time with you and sharing many interesting details about Devara. I was excited to share many details about Devara and explain the efforts put into the film. But, the event couldn't happen due to security reasons. I share your disappointment. My pain is more than yours.”

The makers of the film also released an official statement. “We were eagerly waiting for this day as we’ve worked hard on this film for years and wanted to celebrate it on a grand scale especially since it's the first solo release of our beloved Man of Masses NTR after 6 years. However we faced many challenges,” they said.

“The pre-release event was scheduled very close to Ganesh Nimarjanam and large-scale events like this typically require at least a week of preparation. Additionally, heavy rains over the past few days created many challenges. Even though it didn’t rain today, conditions wouldn’t have been favorable for an outdoor event to happen even if we had planned it. The massive turnout of fans despite our best efforts became uncontrollable as barricades were broken due to the overwhelming crowd. For the safety of everyone we had to make the tough decision to call off the event.”

“We understand that many of you traveled from different parts of the country to celebrate and see your hero. We hope everyone is safe and has returned home safely. We deeply apologize for the inconvenience and are truly sorry for the situation. Thank you for your understanding and support.”