OTT challenge will not stop B-town from betting big on theatrical business, says Kailashnath Adhikari

The year 2022 will be marked by a slew of big-budget Bollywood films that are either set to hit theatres or are already in production to meet their respective release dates. While the danger of lockdowns looms large, B-town is doing everything it can to get movies to theatres, with OTT appearing as a saving grace during these trying times.

Many celebrities, including Akshay Kumar, Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt, Ranveer Singh, Prabhas, Aamir Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Tiger Shroff, Varun Dhawan, and Hrithik Roshan, will be shown on screens in the coming year.

"There are opportunities for filmmakers, storytellers, actors, and producers to make more than one kind of content and to cater to a global audience," says Kailashnath Adhikari, director of Happii Digital and Broadcasting Network Pvt. Ltd., which operates under its flagship company Sri Adhikari Brothers (SAB) Group. For both creators and consumers, this year has opened up new doors. As a producer, I'm encouraged to think of new methods to delight people on OTT in a more intimate way, as well as new ways to create larger-than-life entertainment for cinemas."

In 2021, there was a perfect mixture of OTT release and films on big screen which helped filmmakers survive the woes of pandemic. 

Here’s a quick look at some of the 2022 releases:

1. Prithviraj: The YRF film based on Chahamana (Chauhan) dynasty king Prithviraj Chauhan features an ensemble of Akshay Kumar, Manushi Chhillar, Sanjay Dutt, Sonu Sood, Ashutosh Rana, Sakshi Tanwar, Manav Vij and Lalit Tiwari. The film directed by Chandraprakash Dwivedi is slated to hit the screens on January 21.

2. Gehraiyaan: Shakun Batra's third feature film is another big film with a promising starcast of Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday and Dhairya Karwa in leading roles, with Naseeruddin Shah and Rajat Kapoor. The romantic drama, which was recently announced, will take the OTT route and release on Prime Video on January 25.

3. Gangubai Kathiawadi: Sanjay Leela Bhansali's biographical crime drama, which is set to have its world premiere at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival in February, is based on the life of Gangubai, a madame in the red light area of Kamathipura. The film stars Alia Bhatt playing the titular character. In addition, it also stars Vijay Raaz, Indira Tiwari and Seema Pahwa in pivotal roles with Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi in extended cameos. The film will hit the screen on February 18.

4. Jayeshbhai Jordaar: The social comedy film written and directed by Divyang Thakkar stars Ranveer Singh in the role of a Gujarati man, who advocates equal rights for males and females in the society. The film is scheduled to release in theatres on February 25.

5. Bachchan Pandey: Akshay Kumar's second release of 2022 is an action comedy which will see the superstar in the role of a gangster. The film, which also stars Kriti Sanon and Jacqueline Fernandez, will release theatrically on March 4.

6. Shamshera: The sixth biggest release of 2022, will see Ranbir Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt and Vaani Kapoor coming together under the umbrella of period action drama. The film, which went into production in December 2018, is currently under post-production and will release on March 18.

7. Laal Singh Chaddha: The film which is an official remake of Robert Zemeckis's Tom Hanks starrer, 'Forrest Gump', will see Aamir Khan returning to the silver screens after a wait of 3 long years. The comedy drama directed by Advait Chandan also stars Kareena Kapoor Khan, and will be released on April 14.

8. Heropanti 2: Tiger Shroff and Tara Sutaria starrer, 'Heropanti 2' is a sequel of Tiger's debut film. The romantic action film directed by Ahmed Khan is expected to hit the screens on April 29.

9. Jug Jugg Jeeyo: Dharma Productions' comedy drama, which stars an ensemble of Anil Kapoor, Neetu Kapoor, Varun Dhawan and Kiara Advani in the lead roles alongside Prajakta Koli and Manish Paul, is another big ticket release scheduled to release on June 24.

10. Cirkus: The Rohit Shetty's comedy drama is an official remake of the 1982 film, 'Angoor'. It stars Ranveer Singh in a double role for the first time. In addition it also stars Pooja Hegde, Jacqueline Fernandez, Varun Sharma, Siddhartha Jadhav, Johnny Lever and Sanjay Mishra, and is slated to release on July 15.

11. Adipurush: The mythological film based on 'Ramayan', which stars Prabhas, Kriti Sanon and Saif Ali Khan, has been shot simultaneously in Hindi and Telugu. The film along with its dubbed versions in Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada will release on August 11.

12. Raksha Bandhan: After the recently released, 'Atrangi Re', Akshay Kumar's second collaboration with Aanand L. Rai will be in the form of 'Raksha Bandhan' wherein he will be seen sharing the screen with Bhumi Pednekar along. The film will clash with 'Adipurush' as it will be released theatrically on August 11.

13. Brahmastra Part One: Shiva: Perhaps the biggest release in the list, 'Brahmastra' has been in the making for eight years. Directed by Ayan Mukerji, the superhero film stars Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Amitabh Bachchan, Mouni Roy and Nagarjuna Akkineni and will release in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada on September 9.

14. Vikram Vedha Remake: The neo - noir action thriller, which stars Hrithik Roshan, Saif Ali Khan and Radhika Apte will arrive in theatres on September 30.

15. Ram Setu: Akshay Kumar has secured a Diwali release for 'Ram Setu' directed by Abhishek Sharma. The film also stars Jacqueline Fernandez and Nushrratt Bharuccha, and is scheduled to release theatrically on October 21.

16. Merry Christmas: 2022's last big release will see Katrina Kaif sharing the screen with Tamil Superstar Vijay Sethupathi under the direction of Sriram Raghavan, who is known for 'Andhadhun'. 'Merry Christmas' will release on December 23.-

With Inputs from IANS