Will bring one of the films during Holi, say makers of Sooryavanshi and 83

Sooryavanshi were to originally release in 2020 summer

With the new year, come new plans. As we turned the calendar to 2021, the makers of Sooryavanshi and 83 have begun charting the way forward for the two Bollywood biggies, which have been waiting in the wings for a theatrical outing for the past 10 months. The makers are planning to release one of the event movies over the Holi weekend.

83 were to originally release in 2020 summer

Shibasish Sarkar, chief executive officer, Reliance Entertainment group, which has bankrolled the films, says, "The situation in the country is improving as is the economy, so the mood is largely positive. A section of people headed to theatres to watch Tenet and Wonder Woman 1984. That was an encouraging sign. So, now, we are looking at bringing one of the films in the third week of March, during Holi. We have yet to decide on the film though." He is hopeful that with the vaccine roll-out around the corner, the situation will further improve. "These are event films that would have made Rs 300 crore under normal circumstances, so we can't play around with them. We need to be certain of the situation."

Master hits screens on January 13

Come March, it will be exactly a year to the Akshay Kumar-starrer that was originally planned as a Gudi Padwa 2020 offering. "We were supposed to release Sooryavanshi on March 24, and 83 in April. If we follow the same sequence, Sooryavanshi should come first. That said, we are discussing the nitty-gritty."

Shibasish Sarkar, Reliance Entertainment

Sarkar reveals that Vijay's Tamil release, Master, will serve as a precursor to help them gauge the market. Following the star's meeting with Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami in December, the Tamil Nadu government permitted 100 per cent occupancy in theatres - a move that has been widely criticised by the frontline workers as well as public. On Wednesday, the Centre directed Tamil Nadu government to revoke its order, stating that it diluted the guidelines issued by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. "We are waiting for the January 13 release. There are four to five big releases in Tamil and Telugu cinema. There is a huge amount of confidence in the makers and the audience," reasons Sarkar.