Lockdown Impact: Gulabo Sitabo & Other Films Likely To Skip Theatres And Go Direct To Digital
News
oi-Swikriti Srivastava
By P T I
Big
ticket
releases
such
as
Amitabh
Bachchan's
Gulabo
Sitabo
may
bypass
theatres
and
premiere
directly
on
digital
platforms,
being
seen
as
a
potential
saviour
for
the
film
industry
in
a
year
marred
by
the
COVID-19
pandemic
and
uncertainty
over
when
cinemas
will
open.
Faced
with
the
question
of
going
direct
to
digital
or
waiting
for
theatres
to
open
after
the
situation
improves,
many
filmmakers
and
production
houses
are
exploring
the
option
of
heading
to
streaming
platforms,
industry
insiders
said.
Shoojit
Sircar's
Amitabh-Ayushman
Khurrana
starrer
Gulabo
Sitabo,
Anu
Menon's
eponymous
biopic
on
math
genius
Shakuntala
Devi,
with
Vidya
Balan
in
the
title
role,
as
well
as
Chehre,
another
Amitabh
film,
are
among
the
films
likely
to
be
released
soon
on
a
streaming
platform.
"The
deal
of
releasing
'Gulabo
Sitabo',
a
quirky
comedy
set
in
Lucknow,
and
'Shakuntala
Devi'
on
Amazon
Prime
Video
has
been
locked.
The
official
announcement
for
both
the
films
is
most
likely
to
be
made
this
week,"
a
source
close
to
the
streamer
told
PTI.
Ronnie
Lahiri,
producer
on
Gulabo
Sitabo,
neither
confirmed
nor
denied
reports
when
PTI
reached
out
to
him
but
asked
journalists
to
wait
for
an
official
statement.
An
insider
on
the
team
of
Shakuntala
Devi
also
did
not
comment
about
the
film's
digital
release.
Chehre
producer
Anand
Pandit
said
a
digital
release
was
under
consideration.
"Given
how
the
lockdown
is
panning
out,
a
digital
release
for
'Chehre' is
being
mulled,"
Pandit
said,
adding
they
would
wait
till
the
first
week
of
June
to
take
a
final
call.
India
has
been
under
lockdown
since
March
25
to
curb
the
spread
of
the
novel
coronavirus.
The
one
official
announcement
was
the
release
of
Nawazuddin
Siddiqui's
film
Ghoomketu,
which
streamed
on
ZEE5
last
week.
Most
other
plans
are
shrouded
in
secrecy
with
officials
reluctant
to
come
on
record.
But
the
list
of
2020
films
which
will
be
released
on
streaming
platforms
is
long,
said
insiders.
Top
on
the
list
is
Laxmmi
Bomb,
featuring
Akshay
Kumar
and
backed
by
Fox
Star
Studios,
which
has
reportedly
been
picked
up
by
the
recently
launched
service
Disney+Hotstar.
However,
Hotstar
representatives
maintained
a
no
comment
stance
as
did
producer
Tusshar
Kapoor.
The
movie,
directed
by
Raghava
Lawrence,
was
scheduled
to
be
released
on
May
22
in
theatres.
That
is
unlikely
to
happen
with
no
signs
of
cinema
theatres
opening
even
if
the
lockdown
ends.
The
other
2020
releases-
Varun
Dhawan-starrer
Coolie
No
1,
Jhund
with
Bachchan
and
Jahnvi
Kapoor's
Gunjan
Saxena-
are
also
likely
to
head
to
different
OTT
platforms.
Kiara
Advani-starrer
Indoo
Ki
Jawani,
co-produced
by
Nikkhil
Advani
and
Bhushan
Kumar,
is
also
reportedly
looking
for
a
digital
release.
However,
Advani
said
the
film
is
currently
being
edited
despite
physical
constraints
and
the
team
is
optimistic
it
will
be
ready
very
soon.
"We
are
exploring
all
possible
avenues.
Nothing
stands
confirmed
or
committed.
As
soon
as
we
are
clear
about
the
way
ahead,
we
will
make
a
statement," he
said.
Bhushan's
T-Series'
has
two
other
films,
Ludo
and
Jhund.
While
questions
sent
to
Bhushan
on
the
slate
of
his
films
were
left
unanswered,
a
source
from
the
production
house
confirmed
that
T-Series
is
planning
to
release
its
films
digitally
and
talks
are
currently
on.
There
are
also
some
producers
who
want
to
wait
it
out.
Producer
Jackky
Bhagnani,
who
was
looking
forward
to
the
theatrical
release
of
Coolie
No
1
on
May
1,
said
he
is
not
thinking
about
films
right
now.
"Let
us
overcome
this
crisis
and
we
will
announce
in
happier
times,"
Bhagnani
said
when
asked
about
whether
he
was
looking
at
releasing
the
film
digitally.
Reliance
Entertainment
said
it
will
wait
to
release
two
of
this
year's
most
awaited
films
Akshay
starrer
Sooryavanshi
with
'83,
fronted
by
Ranveer
Singh.
The
team
will
wait
for
the
lockdown
to
be
lifted
and
release
these
movies
in
theatres.
"We
will
first
complete
the
film
then
we
will
wait.
If
six
or
nine
months
down
the
line
the
situation
becomes
much
worse
we
will
take
a
call
at
that
time.
There
is
no
hurry.
Same
is
the
case
with
'Sooryavanshi'
and
our
other
films,"
Reliance
Entertainment
Group
CEO
Shibashish
Sarkar
told
PTI
last
month.
Irrfan
Khan's
last
film
Angrezi
Medium
headed
to
OTT
platforms
soon
after
its
theatrical
release
as
the
lockdown
led
to
cinema
halls
being
closed.
"There
is
a
lot
of
big
money
involved.
Also,
if
you
release
on
OTT
you
cannot
release
it
in
theatres
If
you
release
a
film
in
theatre
it
will
come
on
satellite
as
well
as
digital
later,"
said
trade
analyst
Taran
Adarsh.
Last
week,
the
Multiplex
Association
of
India
(MAI)
appealed
to
studio
partners,
producers,
artistes
and
content
creators
to
support
the
cinema
exhibition
sector
by
holding
their
films
and
releasing
them
in
theatres
once
they
reopen.
The
statement
followed
reports
that
several
films
were
looking
at
a
direct
to
digital
release
amid
the
lockdown.
The
combination
of
'pent-up
demand'
and
the
promise
of
new
movies
would
boost
film
business
and
contribute
massively
in
reviving
the
industry,
the
association
said.
"The
collective,
social
experience
of
watching
films
on
the
big
screen
needs
to
be
preserved
and
it
can
be
done
so
only
with
the
collective
support
of
all
stakeholders,"
the
statement
from
the
body
read.