Bollywood had barely begun to heave a sigh of relief when the second COVID wave struck. The release of many big movies was pushed ahead at exactly this time last year in the hope of better times. Some filmmakers took the OTT route to release their films such as ‘Gulabo Sitabo’, ‘Laxmi Bomb’, ‘Indu Ki Jawaani’, ‘Dil Bechara’ and others.
Well, the better time did come but only like a flash. Just as filmmakers were prepping to release their films with cinema halls having opened, we are talking about COVID protocol once again.
Here is a list of films that were supposed to see the light of the day in April but it seems we will have to wait longer to watch them.
Chehre
Everything was set for the release of this film on April 9. In fact, it was also shrouded due to Rhea Chakraborty missing from the posters. But then on March 31, the makers announced that the film has been postponed in the wake of the rising COVID-19 cases and the new date has not been decided yet.
This is what Emraan Hashmi wrote, “The well-being of our very own audience is of utmost importance to us. We are extremely humbled by the love and support that we have received this far. See you in the cinemas soon. Until then, stay safe! – Team #Chehre (sic).”
“Due to the rising cases of COVID-19 and new guidelines for cinemas, we are unable to release our movie Chehre on 9th April and have decided to postpone until further notice. We have received an overwhelming response on our trailer and we are grateful for the love and support. We have decided to bring Chehre to audiences theatrically when the environment is more conducive for the experience. See you in cinemas very soon, until then stay safe and healthy! Cover your Chehre with a mask and don’t forget to use sanitiser. Team Chehre.”
Bunty Aur Babli 2
Aditya Chopra, the producer of this film has decided that the police will have to wait longer to nab Bunty and Babli. In other words, Yash Raj Films has deferred the April 23 release of the film starring Saif Ali Khan, Rani Mukherjee, Siddhant Chaturvedi and Sharvari.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh announced the news on Twitter. He wrote, “#BreakingNews: #BuntyAurBabli2 – which was scheduled to release in *cinemas* on 23 April 2021 – has been postponed… #YRF will announce the new release date later. #SaifAliKhan, #RaniMukerji, #SiddhantChaturvedi #Sharvari (sic).” In a second tweet, he added, “Due to the spike in #Covid19 cases and the impact on the entertainment industry in #India, #YRF has taken the call to push the release of #BuntyAurBabli2 ahead (sic).”
Haathi Mere Saathi
Being trilingual, this movie had created quite a buzz. It was supposed to release together in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. But while the first two versions were released on March 26, the Hindi one has been postponed indefinitely. The makers cited the rising number of coronavirus cases as a reason behind the decision.
This is what they said, “Dear viewers, it pains us to share this news but given the Covid-19 situation in the Hindi markets, the team of Haathi mere Saathi has decided to hold on to the release of the film. We shall keep you posted on further developments. However, we will be releasing Aranya and Kaadan in the South markets on 26th of March.”
No Means No
This Indo-Polish film with ‘bad man’ Gulshan Grover in it was scheduled to release in theatres on March 22. The new date for its release is November 5, 2021.
Now it remains to be seen whether AR Rahman’s ’99 Songs’ scheduled for April 16, Kangana Ranaut’s ‘Thalaivi’ scheduled for April 23 and Akshay Kumar’s ‘Sooryavanshi’ scheduled for April 30 will hit the theatres this month or not.
