Remember the feud between Ram Gopal Varma and Aamir Khan after "Rangeela"? An off-the-cuff remark from the director about the 'method' actor's performance sparked off a cold war that threatens to last forever.

Over the years Ramu hasn't made much of an effort to patch up with the actor. Now his latest move may further incense the Khan -- Ramu has decided to introduce by far the most lethal discovery Mohit Ahlawat to the audience on the same day that the newest Aamir Khan flick hits the theatres.

Yes, Varma's "James" will open Aug 19, the day that Ketan Mehta's "Mangal Pandey - The Rising" is also expected to grace screens across the country.

So is Ramu hysterical about the historical?

"Not at all! My film is a completely different genre. It's a full-on masala film designed to project Mohit Ahlawat as a complete star. He gets to do everything that the masses expect a star to do. Fight, dance, cry, laugh, romance the girl... you name it. 'James' is the most massy film I've ever made. Why should it affect 'Mangal Pandey' which is, I believe, a biographical historical film?"

The un-stated undercurrent in Ramu's thesis is that historicals don't run in our country. Take the example of Raj Santoshi's "The Legend Of Bhagat Singh" or Shyam Benegal's "Bose - The Forgotten Hero".

Can the makers of "Mangal Pandey" afford to take on competition from what Varma says is his most mainstream film to date?

Mohit Ahlawat is being touted as the next complete star after Hrithik Roshan. Varma concurs: "He's a complete package. An all-in-one kind of hero."

While other films including Hriday Shetty's "Pyar Mein Twist" (featuring Rishi-Dimple-Sammir Dattani-Soha Ali Khan) are running scared of "Mangal Pandey" (Shetty's film has now been re-scheduled for the end of August), Varma isn't one to buckle under pressure.

Reminds one of Yash Chopra's "Lamhe" and Kuku Kohli's "Phool Aur Kaante", the latter featuring lanky newcomer Ajay Devgan, which were released on the same Friday in 1991.

Everyone thought the biggie would banish the small one. But we all know what happened.