Close on the heels of the Tamilnadu Theatres Owners Associations threatening to put a red card on Vijay demanding compensation for the losses they have suffered screening Aathi, the South India Film Artistes Association has come forward to his rescue.

Artistes association general secretary Sarath Kumar, in a press release, in Chennai, said, the problems faced by the theatre owners are commercial in nature and Vijay was in no way involved with the commercial aspects of the film. ‘Adopting a hard-line attitude and threatening boycotts are not advisable.’

Due to a last minute technical glitch, Aathi’s release was delayed by a day. Even then, the producer had made advertisements and promos to announce the release on 15 January. Besides, the theatre owners had to approach the distributor as the producer had done all that was needed. Hence, the recent outpouring of discontent would set a wrong precedent as this could be repeated in the case of films of other heroes. Instead of taking harsh steps, the concerned parties should hold discussions, he said.

A cornered Vijay would be happy with the support coming his way.