Code word needed for decoding BO fate of Raju Chacha!

True, Ajay Devgan produced Raju Chacha.

He might also have ghost-directed the film.

But trying to prove the film is a hit is a bit too far-fetched.

The actor-producer's office has categorically asked all Bombay cinemas screening Raju Chacha not to divulge any information about the BO collections of the film.

A spokesman for Ashish cinema, Chembur, Bombay, said, "We've been instructed to send collection figures in writing to Ajay Devgan's office and to not entertain telephone calls in this regard even if the caller identified himself as Ajay Devgan's man!"

It is the usual practice for trade papers to counter-check collections with cinemas because producers and distributors often give inflated figures for publication for obvious reasons.

Ajay Devgan, on his part, has been known in the past for 'feeding' cinemas screening his starrers by buying off unsold tickets.

A staffer at Shreyas cinema, Ghatkopar, Bombay, on being asked for collections of Raju Chacha mid-week by a trade paper reporter, queried, "Code-word?" Code-word for decoding the box-office fate of Raju Chacha?

Agreed, it's a kid's film, but how kiddish can one get?

Incidentally, it goes without saying that the film's collections are dropping.

Otherwise, Ajay's office wouldn't have had to take pains of finalizing code-words for each cinema. Raju Chacha, however, is doing a bit alright in East Punjab.