Scared of SRK's 'Raees', filmmakers play the waiting game

Several Bollywood filmmakers are waiting for the makers of a Shah Rukh Khan starrer 'Raees' to announce its release date so that they can schedule their films accordingly

On April 15, we had reported that in all probability the clash between Shah Rukh Khan's 'Raees' and Salman Khan's 'Sultan' will be averted as the former is eyeing a Diwali release. This would mean that 'Raees' with release alongside Ajay Devgn's 'Shivaay' (Read more). Although no confirmation has been given on the matter but we hear that a number of filmmakers are eagerly waiting for the makers of 'Raees' to announce its release date so that they can plan their own film's release.

Shah Rukh Khan in 'Raees'

Says trade analyst Taran Adarsh, "In my opinion, Salman and Shah Rukh should avoid clashing with each other as it will hamper the business of both films. Also, it goes without saying that filmmakers would not want to release their films with SRK."

Trade analyst Girish Wankhede seconds Adarsh's opinion and says, "No body would want to clash with a film like 'Raees' because it features SRK and is backed with a huge promotional budget. Also, any film which releases on the same date will have to fight for screens. It's natural for other filmmakers to wait for the confirmation and then plan for their films accordingly."

What's on the line
According to the buzz, 'Raees' is all set to release on Diwali, which is a long weekend. This means that it will take on Ajay Devgn's 'Shivaay' and Karan Johar's 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'. Needless to say that if all big films are slated to release on the same day, one of the three will budge and shift. However, 'Rock On 2' will hit theatres just ten days later leaving very little time for any of the films to recover their money as collections will be divided.

Also, there are speculations that if 'Raees' doesn't release on Diwali, it plans to hit theatres in the first week of December and Aditya Chopra's 'Befikre' has already blocked December 9. Shah Rukh Khan and Aditya Chopra go back a long way and will not want to clash at the BO. Therefore, one of the two will move and target Christmas as it is the holiday weekend. But that is occupied by Aamir Khan's Dangal and clashing with this film would mean a divided business yet again. Therefore, either 'Dangal' or 'Befikre' will be pushed to January 2017 which already will have its set of films lined up.

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