Akshay Kumar, Pankaj Tripathi and Yami Gautam`s OMG 2 is witnessing steady growth at the box office despite stiff competition from the Gadar 2 wave. The docudrama revolving around sex education received an `Adults Only` certification after going through the CBFC scanner. Akshay, who is one of the highest-paid stars in India at present, apparently didn`t charge a single rupee for OMG 2.
Ajit Andhare, the COO of Viacom18, said in an interview with PinkVilla that Akshay didn`t only forgo his fees but also stood by the makers with respect to the financial and creative risks. He further reacted to reports of OMG 2 being made on a heavy budget. “The reports of the budget of OMG2 are grossly exaggerated. On the contrary, Akshay didn`t charge a rupee in fee and in fact, walked alongside us in both the financial & creative risk involved in such a courageous film,” Ajit said.
Talking about his professional association with Akshay, Ajit shared, “We share a long history & understanding with him as a Studio since OMG1, Special 26, and Toilet: Ek Prem Katha and I have been totally in lockstep with him in taking up scripts that are unconventional but stand for something larger & meaningful. Without him this risk was impossible to take, he was fully invested both creatively & financially.”
According to the latest report, OMG 2 has been made on a budget of Rs 50 crore. The film is still successfully running in theatres and has earned Rs 85.05 crores in a week`s time.
Directed by Amit Rai, OMG 2 stars Akshay as Lord Shiva’s messenger whereas Pankaj is Kanti Sharan Mudgal, and Yami plays a lawyer named Kamini Maheshwari. The film also stars Pavan Raj Malhotra, Govind Namdev, Aarush Varma, Arun Govil, and Brijendra Kala. OMG 2 released with Gadar 2 at the box office on August 11. Despite the clash with the Sunny Deol starrer, the spiritual sequel of OMG 2 made it to the 100-crore club globally in a week.
OMG 2 came under the CBFC`s scanner as the film showed Akshay as Mahadev. It was later modified to `messenger of God`. The censorship board also requested the makers to make 25 modifications to the film to avoid further controversies.
