Ronnie Screwvala calls deluge of film release dates 'hysterical', wonders if all is 'magically back to normal'

Film producer Ronnie Screwvala has shared his opinion on the sudden storm of film release announcements in Bollywood. Hansal Mehta has agreed with his observation.

Film producer Ronnie Screwvala has voiced his concern at the sudden deluge of film release dates being announced in Bollywood. Multiple big-ticket films such as 83, Bellbottom, Atrangi Re and more have announced their release dates in the last week.

Akshay Kumar’s Bell Bottom will hit the theatres on May 28, while Ranveer Singh’s sports drama 83 comes on June 4

Taking to Twitter, Ronnie wrote, "Funny(Hysterical) that everyone announcing Movie release dates like magically all back to normal! FOMO in announcements and theoretical discussions on ‘clashes’. personally cant see till 300Mill vaccinated that it’s really safe to ‘GoToTheMovies’-no such thing as #HerdImmunity." Filmmaker Hansal Mehta retweeted him and wrote, "I agree. Wonder what prompted this spate of announcements?"

Film exhibitor Akshaye Rathi commented on his tweet, asking him to consider the other side too. "I hope you realise that the exhibition sector employs over 4 lakh Indians directly & millions of others indirect. Many of these people are the sole bread earners in their families. Is protecting their livelihood not important enough? Please think of the bigger picture," he wrote.

Bellbottom, an espionage thriller starring Akshay Kumar, is scheduled to release on May 28. Produced by Vashu Bhagnani's Pooja Entertainment, the film is set in the 1980s and about one of India's forgotten heroes.

Co-starring Vaani Kapoor, Huma Qureshi and Lara Dutta, Bellbottom was one of the first Bollywood films to resume production amid the pandemic. The film is co-produced by Emmay Entertainment.

Akshay, 53, will also appear in a special role in filmmaker Aanand L Rai's Atrangi Re, co-starring Sara Ali Khan and Dhanush. The movie will release on August 6.

The actor superstar's third project is Prithviraj, backed by Yash Raj Films. The movie has locked the November 5 release date.

It is expected that Akshay's much-awaited cop drama Sooryavanshi, which was delayed last year due to the pandemic, will be hitting the screens in 2021. However, the film's makers are yet to announce an official date.

Amitabh Bachchan, 78, announced that his sports film Jhund will open on June 18. The film marks the Hindi directorial debut of filmmaker Nagraj Manjule, best known for Marathi blockbuster Sairat and the critically-acclaimed 2013 drama Fandry.

"COVID gave us setbacks but it's comeback time now! We're back in theatres. 'Jhund' releasing 18th June," Bachchan tweeted.

Backed by T-Series, Jhund features Bachchan as Vijay Barse, a Nagpur-based retired sports teacher who started a slum soccer movement. The film was earlier scheduled to release in September last year but was pushed due to the pandemic that forced the shutdown of theatres across the country.

Ranveer Singh's 83, about the Indian cricket team's 1983 World Cup win, will also see the light of the day as the film will now release on June 4. Directed by filmmaker Kabir Khan, 83 was yet another major movie that was delayed because of the pandemic in 2020.

Ayushmann Khurrana has booked July 9 as the release date of his romantic-drama Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui, co-starring Vaani Kapoor. The Abhishek Kapoor-directed film, billed as a "progressive love story", will see the Article 15 actor essay the role of a cross-functional athlete.

The film's production commenced in October 2020 and the team wrapped the film in about 48 days in Chandigarh.

The industry also saw the release date announcement of filmmaker Luv Ranjan's upcoming untitled movie with Ranbir Kapoor, set to screen theatrically on March 18, 2022. The film also features Shraddha Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia and producer Boney Kapoor, who makes his acting debut.

The yet-untitled film is produced by Ranjan and Ankur Garg's Luv Films and presented by T-Series' Bhushan Kumar.

On Wednesday, YRF had unveiled its slate of five films that will be releasing in 2021. The movies are -- Parineeti Chopra and Arjun Kapoor-starrer Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar (March 19); Bunty Aur Babli 2 (April 23), Ranbir Kapoor's Shamshera (June 25); Jayeshbhai Jordaar, starring Ranveer Singh, (August 27); and Akshay's Prithiviraj (November 5).

(With inputs from PTI)