Actor Sidharth Malhotra, who plays a pivotal role in "Aiyaary", feels the clash between the movie and Akshay Kumar's "Pad Man" could have been avoided. But he says he can only hope for the best now. "Aiyaary", was originally slated for release on January 25 to make the most of the long Republic Day weekend. It was clashing with "Pad Man". But after "Padmaavat" got a final release date of January 25, the makers of "Aiyaary" moved its release to February 9 to avoid clashing with it and "Pad Man". However, Akshay Kumar, as a move in support of Sanjay Leela Bhansali and to let "Padmaavat" get a solo release, shifted "Pad Man" to February 9, bringing the situation back to square one -- clashing with "Aiyaary".