New Delhi May 22 (IANS) As actors John Abraham and Diana Penty undertook a ride on an open jeep in the inner circle of Delhi s Connaught Place to promote their forthcoming film "Parmanu - The Story of Pokhran" the crowd followed them on what they called the Parmanu Pride Parade.
Star-struck fans walked along and cars and scooters surrounded the jeep with people trying to capture the two celebrities on their smartphones. They took 15 minutes to complete a round.
Explaining the unique idea John told IANS here: "Honestly I was asked to go to a mall where there are 20 000 people. But I said Listen our film is not about a mall so let s use this as an excuse to let people feel proud about the country . We only hear negative things in the news about India and it s quite disheartening.
"So I thought let s use today make it an example and get people out and ask them what it is it about India that they love."
John had through social media spread the word about the parade so that people could join in.
His message to the fans read: "Today let us unite for the Parmanu Pride Parade which celebrates a proud historic moment that put India on the global map. Be there 5 p.m. at Connaught Place as team Parmanu walks in the glory of our nation! Feel proud as an Indian. We are part of this proud moment are you?"
"Parmanu - The Story of Pokhran" releasing on Friday is about the nuclear tests India conducted in 1998.
John who has produced the film has been promoting the movie actively. He says the promotions have been "strategic" as the film is a "different beast".

--IANS rb/bg