Chiranjeevi’s Acharya release postponed?

Powerstar Pawan Kalyan’s Vakeel Saab will kick-start the season of big releases in Telugu cinema this summer. After Vakeel Saab, the next big-budget extravaganza that is set for release is Chiranjeevi-starrer Acharya. Directed by Koratala Siva, the socio-political entertainer is slated to release on May 13. 

Grapevine is that the makers of Acharya are in two minds to release the film on May 13 following the sharp rise of Covid-19 cases across the Telugu States. It is learnt that Chiranjeevi and the makers are treading the situation cautiously and are contemplating postponing Acharya to late summer.

While the chances of implementing a lockdown have been ruled out in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh at the moment, we hear, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government is planning to hold a review meeting on Monday to impose stringent restrictions on non-essential businesses and banning rallies or public gatherings due to massive rise in Covid-19 positive cases and fatalities. 

Likewise in Karnataka, the distributors and exhibitors of Andhra Pradesh seem worried that the AP government may impose occupancy restrictions in theatres to deal with the surge in Covid-19 cases. Adding insult to the injury, the recent Telugu releases – Rang De, Thellavarithe Guruvaram, Wild Dog, Sultan and Yuvarathnaa, have failed to attract crowds to the theatres. The lacklustre response is also worrying the distributors a lot.

“The distributors and exhibitors are worried about the underwhelming reception along with the latest spike in Covid-19 cases. While they continue to believe that Vakeel Saab will bring in some cheer to them, the Andhra Pradesh government’s review meeting on Monday is keeping them on their toes. If the Andhra government issues a new SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) restricting theatres to operate at 50% occupancy, they have no choice but to request the makers of Acharya to postpone its release until the situation limps back to normalcy. So Acharya has a 50-50 chance of hitting the screens on May 13,” the source adds.

Also starring Ram Charan, Kajal Aggarwal and Pooja Hegde, Acharya is being bankrolled by Konidela Productions in association with Matinee Entertainments. The film has music by Mani Sharma.