Omicron stalls 2022 movie releases

Mumbai: The list of big-ticket films ready and awaiting release is growing by the day with theatres either closing down or operating at 50 per cent capacity and audiences too scared to venture into a hall anyway, dealing another blow to a battered industry unsteadily rising to its feet.

S S Rajamouli’s “RRR”, Akshay Kumar’s “Prithviraj”, Shahid Kapoor starter “Jersey”, Prabhas’ “Radhe Shyam and Ajith Kumar’s Tamil action-drama “Valimai” are among the titles that were supposed to release this month “and help propel the Indian film industry to revival after nearly two years of a pandemic.

But the rise of the highly transmissible Covid variant Omicron has put paid to all the plans, leaving industry insiders in despair.

No one expected the scenario to become so grim so soon, said Aman Gill, the producer of “Jersey” who pushed the release of his film just three days before its December 31 date.

“It is just like what we all were doing before Diwali last year. Nobody knows when things will get better and how things will unfold in the coming days and months,” Gill said.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh agreed, saying restrictions in many states and the escalating numbers may result in no films releasing in February as well. —(PTI)