This week has dropped bombshells like none other. It started out with the announcement that Amitabh Bachchan (Big B)‘s Marathi film debut ‘AB Aani CD’ will premiere on Amazon Prime Video on 1st May. The film was released in the theatres on 13th March, and just two shows into its theatrical debut, the Maharashtra government shut down theatres on the same day itself to curtail the Coronavirus outbreak.
Unfazed, producer Akshay Bardapurkar planned to rerelease the movie in theatres, post the lockdown. But with no end to the lockdown in sight, and with reports of cinema halls staying shut until August-September, he finally eschewed the idea of re-release. Taking the sensible way out, and making good his losses — or maybe a profit too, we don’t know the monetary deal involved — he has decided to now premiere the movie on Amazon Prime Video.
Jyothika’s Ponmagal Vandhal has a similar story to tell. It was to release on March 27 in theatres, but the nationwide lockdown put paid to those plans. With the possibility of theatres shut until September looming before him, the movie’s producer Suriya, under his banner 2D Entertainment, decided to sell his movie to Amazon Prime Video and make a neat profit, rather than risk no slot for release. It is clear as day that once cinemas resume operations, it will be big-ticket movies hogging theatre screens all across the country.
It is another matter altogether that Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners Associations have decided that henceforth, they will not screen films featuring Jyothika and Suriya. For the duo, it is akin to being caught between the devil and the deep sea. Let’s see how that story plays out.
But the biggest bombshell dropped this weekend. News doing the rounds is that Akshay Kumar’s much-awaited horror flick Laxmmi Bomb is also planning to take the digital route to release. The producers, one of which is Akshay himself, are apparently in talks with Disney Plus Hotstar to explore an OTT release for the film, which also stars Kiara Advani.
Unlike the other two aforementioned movies, Akshay Kumar’s films are sure-shot money-spinners — the actor hasn’t had a flop in his last 12 outings — which makes it a somewhat strange development that Laxmmi Bomb producers are planning an OTT release for the film. Again, let’s wait to find out how the development plays out.
There are several other mid-budget movies that may land up on digital owing to the unnerving circumstances – Dibakar Banerjee’s much delayed Arjun Kapoor – Parineeti Chopra starrer, Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar; Tamil film Naragasooran, starring Arvind Swami and Shriya Saran, and directed by up-and-coming director Karthick Naren; the much-touted Fault In Our Stars remake Dil Bechara, starring Sushant Singh Rajput and Sanjana Sanghi, produced by Fox Star Studios and directed by Mukesh Chhabra; and finally, Fox Star Studios-produced Lootcase, starring Kunal Khemu and Rasika Dugal.
Already, April has seen a flurry of releases on diverse OTT platforms, of movies that had their theatrical journey cut short due to the Coronavirus outbreak — Bollywood film Angrezi Medium, Telugu thriller Madha, Tamil film Dharala Prabhu, and upcoming release, Baaghi 3. Bamfaad, the Hindi film debut of Aditya Rawal, son of Paresh and Swaroop Rawal, was also slated for a theatrical release. But it too landed on OTT, owing to the uncertainty amidst the pandemic.
To sum it up, there is no hope of theatres re-opening anytime soon. And even when they do open, best Friday slots will certainly go to big-budget movies such as Sooryavanshi, 83 and Radhe. So it’s obvious that the above list is in no way complete. Industry-watchers are expecting more movies to take the digital route as time lapses and producers get more desperate.
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