The Rajinikanth starrer Darbar is progressing well with its makers keen on releasing the film for Pongal next year. While a Pongal release for the Tamil version is a good move due to the long stretch of festival holidays, trade experts opine that it may not work out well for the makers if the Telugu version also releases on the same day. The reason – it will face stiff competition from three Telugu biggies that have been scheduled to release on Sankranthi next year.
The three Telugu films in fray for Sankranthi release next year are Mahesh Babu – Anil Ravipudi’s Sarileru Neekevvaru, the Allu Arjun – Trivikram Srinivas film, and the N Balakrishna – KS Ravikumar project.
Mahesh Babu’s film with Anil Ravipudi is a revenge drama. While the news is already out that Rashmika Mandanna will be playing the female lead in the film and veteran actor Vijayashanthi is in talks for a pivotal role, we hear that Jagapathi Babu, the most wanted villain in the south Indian film circuit right now, will be playing the antagonist.
The Allu Arjun – Trivikram Srinivas project went on the floors a couple of months ago and the second schedule is currently going on. The film is bankrolled jointly by Allu Aravind and S Radha Krishna under the banners Geetha Arts and Haarika & Hassine Creations respectively. The technical crew of this film includes S Thaman for music, PS Vinod for cinematography and Naveen Nooli for editing.
N Balakrishna’s next to be directed by KS Ravikumar has been titled Ruler. According to the latest reports, Shriya Saran will be playing the lead opposite Balakrishna. C Kalyan is bankrolling this venture, which will have music by Chirantan Bhat, and will go on the floors next month.
With three biggies set for a Sankranthi release, it would be a tough fight for the Telugu version of Darbar should it be released at the same time.
(Content provided by Digital Native)