Film releases expected to go erratic

The flow of film releases will get erratic and uneven in the forthcoming months. Generally, the number of releases shows an escalation from April onwards, to capitalize on the summer vacations in India, and the number of new films shows a further escalation in June, July and August. But this year will be an exception.

Raajneeti and Raavan are the only two biggies confirmed for June, while I Hate Luv Storys, Lamhaa, Once Upon A Tome In Mumbai and Kajraare are the talked-about films hitting the screens in July. Of course, expect a slew of low cost/medium range movies week after week in June and July, but there's also a strong possibility that a few weeks may pass off without any release at all.

However, the shortage of new films will be felt in August. The number of new releases and also the footfalls at multiplexes will take a dip this month. Reason: The holy month of Ramzan will begin this month. Generally, film producers avoid releasing their films during this month, since a sizable chunk of movie-going audience stays away from movies.

But September promises to be bountiful, with Anees Bazmee's No Problem, Priyadarshan's Aakrosh, Arbaaz Khan's home-production Dabanng and UTV's animation film Arjun arriving on Eid. In fact, Mukesh Bhatt was keen to bring the Emraan Hashmi starrer Crook in August, but he wants to avoid the rush during the Eid week.

Speaking from Melbourne, where he's shooting for Crook, Mukesh has now decided to bring the film on 24th September, but with the Ranbir-Priyanka starrer Anjaana Anjaani also arriving on this date, there is a possibility that one of them would shift his film to a latter date.