'Sooryavanshi', 'Bell Bottom' releasing on Independence Day? Akshay Kumar responds
What's the story
There were reports doing the rounds that Akshay Kumar's upcoming cop drama Sooryavanshi will see a theatrical release around Independence Day if halls open up by August.
It was also being speculated Kumar's period espionage movie Bell Bottom will also see a simultaneous OTT release.
Stopping the rumor mill, the Khiladi of Bollywood has released a statement earlier on Saturday.
Here's what he said.
Purely speculative
'Will make announcements at the right time'
Quashing the reports, Kumar said it was "purely speculative to say that both films will release on Independence Day" at this stage.
Saying he was "humbled at the excitement and eagerness of my fans regarding the release of Sooryavanshi and Bell Bottom," the Airlift star said, "Producers of both films are working out the release dates and will make announcements at the right time."
Other reports
Has Amazon Prime bagged 'Bell Bottom' direct OTT release rights?
The speculation about Bell Bottom getting a direct digital release around Independence Day started when a recent tweet by LetsOTT Global said that Amazon Prime has won the digital streaming rights of the espionage thriller by defeating Hotstar in a bidding war.
The post said the movie will be tentatively released on August 13.
This was not the first time that such reports emerged.
Twitter Post
'Bell Bottom' might get released on August 13
In the bidding war between Hotstar and Prime - Amazon Prime has bagged #AkshayKumar’s #BellBottom for a Direct OTT release.
— LetsOTT GLOBAL (@LetsOTT) May 22, 2021
Tentative release date - August 13, 2021. pic.twitter.com/uxkanNSIj2
Looking back
Reports of producers discussing terms with Hotstar surfaced earlier
Earlier this month, Nikkhil Advani, one of Bell Bottom's producers, had himself confirmed that second producer, Pooja Entertainment, was in talks with streaming service Hotstar.
However, Pooja Entertainment, headed by Jackky and Vashu Bhagnani, had thrashed the claims.
Asking the media to not print anything without confirming details with them, they had said the official release announcement will be coming "at the opportune time."
Films
The pandemic has greatly delayed the releases
To recall, Sooryavanshi would have seen a theatrical release on March 24, 2020. However, its release was pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Things started looking better a few months back and Rohit Shetty was gearing up to release it on April 2, 2021, but then came the devastating second wave.
Bell Bottom, on the other hand, was scheduled for release in May.