One person was injured when a motorcycle-borne gang hurled a petrol bomb at a crowd gathered outside a cinema hall screening actor Ajith Kumar-starrer 'Valimai' on Thursday. The incident occurred at around 4:30 am when Naveen Kumar was erecting a flex board of the star in front of the theatre complex in the Gandhipuram area here when the duo came on a bike and threw the petrol bomb at him before fleeing, police said.
Kumar sustained minor injuries in the explosion, which caused tense moments in the area, they said. Police suspect rivalry between fans of the actor over erecting banners as the motive behind the crime.
Security has been beefed up in front of other theatres in the city following the incident. The investigation is underway, they added.
Valimai, directed by H Vinoth and featuring Bollywood actors Huma Qureshi and Janhvi Kapoor among others released worldwide on February 24. Mounted on a big scale, Valimai's plot is centred on bikes, goons, action and stunts. However, it is also inspired by a true story. Reportedly, the film draws from CM Jayalalithaa directly appointing a bike racer as a policeman. A similar role is being played by Ajith. He is shown to be doing some death-defying stunts on a motorbike.
The film is being loved by Ajith's fans from all around the world. They have been sharing visuals from the film from inside the theatres on social media platforms.
The movie is produced by Zee Studios and Boney Kapoor. Boney Kapoor pointed out that Valimai will mark the beginning of pan-Indian releases for the actor. "Valimai is the beginning of a pan-India release for Ajith Kumar's movies as we will be releasing the film in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, and Kannada. The film has emotional elements, family elements, outstanding action blocks, and amazing performances by Ajith Kumar and the other members of the cast," the producer said.
-with PTI inputs
