"Harishchandrachi...may be out of Oscars race but it has been well-received at several other film festivals and won awards. It would not have any effect on its response when it is released here this Friday," Mokashi told reporters.
"The movie has already been a favourite with the Indians irrespective of the regions. Therefore, it was our country's official entry for the Academy awards," he said. "The movie has already garnered good publicity," he said adding Oscar entry too created the necessary buzz.
"We have planned a phase-wise release for the movie tracing the birth of Indian cinema," Mokashi added. In the first phase, the movie would be released in 10-15 theatres in Pune and 25-30 theatres in Mumbai. In the second phase, which would be the week after, the film will be screened in Nashik, Solapur, Kolhapur, Aurangabad. In the third phase, Vidarbha would be taken up.
Besides this, since it is a movie related to birth of Indian cinema, we also want to release it in other states. "The subtitled version of the movie would be released in other states too," the debutante director said. Earlier, 'Harishchandrachi..' had failed to make it to the Foreign Language Film category at the 82nd Academy Awards.