Why is Kartik being kept away from Kaanchi promotions? Read on for answer

This weekend was Kaanchi special on Comedy Nights With Kapil where Subhash Ghai appeared with Mithun Chakbraborty who plays a supporting role. But lead actor Kartik was nowhere to be seen until the closing moments of the episode. A source close to the show reveals, “We were instructed to bring on Kartik only at the end of the show and to focus on Ghai, his latest protégée Mishti and Mithunda.” Young actor Kartik Tiwari, best known for his 5-minute monologue on ‘What Women Want’ in Luv Ranjan’s rom-com Pyaar Ka Punchnama, is being kept low-profiled in the promotion and publicity events of Subhash Ghai’s Kaanchi. When asked the nervous semi-newcomer says, “Kaanchi is a woman-centric story. If the film was called Kaancha or Kaancha-Kaanchi I’d have been equally prominent in the publicity.” However the truth is, Ghai has big plans for the newcomer. Heroes in today’s day and age when the heroine is often seen to be playing the hero proudly occupy centrestage with their co-star. A prominent filmmaker who wants to sign Kartik says the star aspirant is being deliberately being kept under wraps. “I saw Pyaar Ka Punchnama and was impressed enough by Kartik to want to sign him for one of my productions. However I was told he was under an exclusive contract for Subhash Ghai’s next. So I waited. Now Kartik is being kept back as the film’s bandh mutthi.” The logic of Kaanchi being a woman-centric film doesn’t make sense for this producer-director. “Queen and Revolver Rani are Kangna Ranaut’s film through and through. Yet we see Kangna’s leading men Rajkummar Rao and Vir Das next to Kangna at every public event. There is no logic to leaving Kartik out of the publicity just because the new girl (Mishti) is the central character in Kaanchi. I am sure Subhashji has a plan.” When asked about Kartik, the Showman smiles mysteriously, “I was looking at dozens of faces to play the male lead in Kaanchi. When I saw Kartik I knew I had found my hero. Kissi doosre ko dekhne ka sawaal hi nahin paida hua. The film is named after the girl. But Kartik’s character is very important.” Interestingly when Subhash Ghai had launched Manisha Koirala and Vivek Mushran in Saudagar the focus of the publicity was more on Mushran whom Ghai had predicted as “the next Dev Anand”. Director Luv Ranjan who launched Kartik in Pyaar Ka Punchnama and also cast him as the lead in 2012’s love story Akaash Vani feels this limited-visibility factor could work in Kartik’s favour. “I am sure Subhash Ghaiji with his years of experience knows what he’s doing. From what I gather Kaanchi is an out-and-out girl’s story, just like Raj Kapoor’s Ram Teri Ganga Maili. Raj Saab deliberately kept the film’s leading man Rajiv Kapoor’s out of the publicity although he was the hero’s father. I am sure Subhashji also has a plan for Kartik. He may turn out to be the band mutthi of the film.”