It was during Sankranthi in 2001 that films starring Chiranjeevi and Balakrishna — Mrugaraju and Narasimha Naidu — released the same day, January 11.
This time around though, Chiranjeevi’s Khaidi No. 150 will hit the screens on January 11, while Balakrishna’s Gautamiputra Satakarni (GPSK) will release on January 12. But, this has led to a huge uproar among fans, and with the proliferation of the social media, there have been many acrimonious comments about the two.
The most common point that is being discussed is the choice of subjects. While Chiranjeevi has chosen what is typically considered a ‘mass’ subject, Balakrishna has gone for a historical film.
Rumour mills have been rife as to how the two films have been positioned for release on successive days. But the most plausible of them was the fact that Chiranjeevi movie’s producer Ramcharan Tej had discussions with the makers of GPSK and arrived at an understanding.
However, no source confirmed this.
Sankranthi releases have been a rage for decades now, and film stars, especially the big ones, actually insist on a releasing their films around the day of the festival because most of them become big hits. It is common knowledge that directors are made to schedule the production accordingly.
The release apart, what is interesting is the way the screens are secured for release. There are approximately 1,600 screens across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and while the numbers have not been confirmed yet, Khaidi No. 150 will release in at least 1,200 of them on Wednesday.
This leads to the question — what happens to GPSK which is slated to release on January 12, the very next day after Chiranjeevi’s 150th film hits the screens? No one from either camp is willing to comment on this, and that is the million dollar question right now.
