The coronavirus outbreak and the subsequent lockdown, has left the film industry in a weird lurch. With theatres shut for an indefinite period – it has induced a tug of war between OTT and theatre releases of films.
Here’s a guide to the upcoming Bollywood movies of 2020; which ones are opting for digital releases, and which ones are waiting for theatrical releases!
Rather than wait for theatres to open, some films like Ghoomketu had opted for a direct digital release. Recently, Amazon Prime Video changed the OTT game by acquiring two titles – Shoojit Sircar’s Gulabo Sitabo, a fun comedy-drama, starring Amitabh Bachchan and Ayushmann Khurrana which will premiere on June 12, and Vidya Balan’s Shakuntala Devi based on the life of famous mathematician Shakuntala Devi nicknamed “human computer”, whose release date is still pending.
Meanwhile, Netflix isn’t far off in this race. Anurag Kashyap’s Choked: Paisa Bolta Hai – a dark take on demonetisation, is all set for Netflix arrival on June 5! Netflix is also reportedly in talks for an OTT release of Shershaah, a Siddharth Malhotra and Kiara Advani starrer based on the Param Vir Chakra awardee and Army martyr Vikram Batra’s life!
Chhalaang, an upcoming social black comedy with Rajkummar Rao and Nushrat Bharucha in lead, and Indoo Ki Jawaani, a coming-of-age-comedy featuring Kiara Advani may also soon hop onto the Netflix wagon!
On the other hand we have Disney+Hotstar. Laxmmi Bomb, a horror comedy starring Akshay Kumar as a man possessed by a transgender ghost, has been reportedly sold for Rs 125 crore to Disney+Hotstar! Fans are pretty bummed about the film being a digital release since they were hoping for the Grand Box Office Dhamaka experience.
Anurag Basu’s Ludo, Karan Johar’s Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, and two of Amitabh Bachchan’s major upcoming films Jhund and Chehre are also looking forward to an OTT release.
However, some filmmakers have decided it’s better to postpone their film releases indefinitely rather than shifting to OTT platforms, since they’re big crowd-pullers. Salman Khan’s Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai, Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi and Ranveer Singh’s sport drama ‘83 will be waiting to tide the Coronavirus wave out and go for a theatrical release reportedly.
Another movie that everyone is eagerly waiting for is Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s biographical film on real-life mafia queen, Gangubai Kathiawadi, starring Alia Bhatt as the controversial main character.
