Reliance Entertainment seems to have opted to prioritize the release of Kabir Khan's 83 over the Akshay Kumar-starrer Sooryavanshi this year. Reports suggest that the biopic based on India's maiden Cricket World Cup triumph will be released on the Christmas weekend while the Rohit Shetty film will be pushed back to January 2021.
Speaking to the Mumbai Mirror newspaper, Reliance Entertainment Group CEO Shibasish Sarkar said, "We definitely don't want to change the release date of 83 for Sooryavanshi. The sports drama is still slated to release on Christmas. We have to decide on the new date of Sooryavanshi with the director and actor, but the film should release between January and March."
Both films were scheduled for an earlier release but have been stuck in limbo due to the lockdown in March. In June, there were talks of Sooryavanshi being scheduled for a Diwali release, while 83 was scheduled to be released on Christmas. There were also talks of the films being streamed on OTT platforms, however, their makers were adamant on a theatrical release.
Back in May 2020, Khan had said, "Both, Rohit and I, would want the audience to enjoy our films on the big screen, and therefore we are ready to wait it out for things to get better."
While theatres have partially reopened, the Diwali festive weekend already has two minor releases in Indoo Ki Jawani and Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari. This has forced Reliance Entertainment to stick with 83 as the major Christmas release while postponing Sooryavanshi. The Akshay Kumar film is likely to be released on Republic Day 2021, but there has been no confirmation yet.
Ranveer Singh stars as Kapil Dev in 83, which chronicles the Indian cricket team's maiden world cup victory in 1983. Sooryavanshi is a spin-off of the hit Simmba (2018), which was a spin-off of Singham (2011).