'Hope everyone is safe': Vijay Deverakonda after 'Liger' event called off midway over crowd issues

Mumbai: Vijay Deverakonda has posted a heartfelt message for his fans after the "Liger" actor and his co-star Ananya Panday had to leave the film's promotional event midway due to an uncontrollable crowd.

On Sunday evening, a huge crowd had gathered at the Nexus Seawoods mall in Navi Mumbai here to catch a glimpse of the actors.

According to the purported videos on social media, a fan fainted at the event following which the organisers decided to call it off.

Hours later, Deverakonda took to his Instagram Stories, saying he hoped his fans were "safe and back home".

"Your love has touched me. Hope you all are safe and back home. Wish I could have been there with you all so much longer. Thinking about you all as I go to bed. Goodnight Mumbai," the 33-year-old actor wrote.

Dharma Productions, one of the banners behind the upcoming movie, in a brief statement said the team had to leave the event midway due to safety concerns.

"Team #Liger is overwhelmed with all the love that you showered on us today at our mall visit in Navi Mumbai. We would like to thank everybody who came to support us.

"Unfortunately, we had to leave midway for the safety of everyone, but the massive turnout just reinstates the love you have showered on us and we would like to send the same love manifold to all our amazing fans! Hope everyone is safe," the production house said in the statement.

Directed by Puri Jagannath, "Liger" stars Deverakonda as an underdog fighter from Mumbai, who competes in an MMA championship.

The sports drama is produced by Jagannadh and Charmme Kaur through their banner Puri Connects and Karan Johar and Apoorva Mehta via Dharma Productions. It will be released in theatres on August 25 in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam.