mid-day was the first to report that Akshay Kumar's Sooryavanshi will no longer be a Diwali release despite the Centre having greenlit the reopening of cinemas from October 15 (Impractical to release Sooryavanshi on Diwali, Oct 2). In the latest development, it is heard that director Rohit Shetty and production house Reliance Entertainment are contemplating releasing the cop caper over the weekend leading up to Republic Day.

"The makers feel it will be an ideal time to release the film, given its theme of patriotism and anti-terrorism. While the current crisis will hopefully be under control by then, the Katrina Kaif-starrer will additionally enjoy the benefit of being the first big release of 2021. The team is currently working out the logistics," reveals a source. The studio's other biggie, Ranveer Singh-starrer '83 will hit the marquee on Christmas as planned. For the uninitiated, Sooryavanshi and '83 were to originally release on March 24 and April 10 respectively. While several films sought a digital premiere during the pandemic-induced lockdown, the studio announced that the two movies will wait out the theatre shutdown to enjoy a big-screen date with the audience.

When mid-day reached out to Shibasish Sarkar, chief executive officer, Reliance Entertainment group, he said, "Sooryavanshi will come anytime between January and March. The date is yet to be locked." Meanwhile, the Diwali window has been booked by Manoj Bajpayee and Diljit Dosanjh-starrer Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari.