Fighter, Merry Christmas, Malaikottai Vaaliban & more theatrical releases in January 2024

Guntur Kaaram (Telugu), January 12

The much-anticipated mass family entertainer starring Telugu superstar Mahesh Babu sees him reuniting with director Trivikram Srinivas after 12 years, making this their third collaboration after the highly-successful Athadu and Khaleja. Made on a huge budge, the film is supposed to be one of the biggest films of Babu’s illustrious career. Initially Pooja Hegde was part of the film but dropped out citing date issues and was replaced by Sreelala. The film was supposed to release last year in April but got delayed due to several reasons.

Merry Christmas (Hindi and Tamil), January 12

Trust Sriram Raghavan to come up with the unusual pairing of Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi and, that too, in what seems to be a romantic thriller of sorts. In his forthcoming whodunit shot simultaneously in Hindi and Tamil, the lead pair remains the same while their co-actors are different in the two language versions. The trailer of the film, cut differently for the two versions show Kaif and Sethupathi’s characters on a date which seems to go horribly wrong later, and have elicited a lot of curiosity and intrigue. Earlier slated for a Christmas release last December, the film is finally releasing in theatres this January.

Eagle (Telugu), January 13

The Ravi Teja-starrer Telugu film is a high-octane action thriller directed by Karthik Gattamaneni. The first look of the film was revealed in November 2023 which shows Teja in multiple get-ups as a ruthless assassin. Teja, who plays the titular role, has pinned a lot of hope on this film after the generally negative reviews of his movie Tiger Nageswara Rao.

Main Atal Hoon (Hindi), January 19

National Award-winning film director Ravi Jadhav’s Main Atal Hoon is a biopic of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The movie traces the journey of the politician from his youth days to his political career. One of the highlights of the film, of course, is the choice of Pankaj Tripathi to play the politician. In an interview, the critically-acclaimed actor has admitted that it was difficult for him to get under the skin of the character and understand the best way to approach playing him.

The Beekeeper (English), January 19

Jason Statham stars as Adam Clay, a former member of the covert group Beekeepers. Although retired, Statham’s character is forced to join in the action after a neighbour falls prey to a phishing scam. The action film teams Statham with director David Ayer of Fame and Suicide Squad fame. The actor had a great last year with four blockbuster releases, including Meg 2: The Trench and Expend4bles and will be hoping for a repeat with this one.

Fighter (Hindi), January 25

It was while shooting for his action-drama War (2019) that director Siddharth Anand narrated the story of Fighter to his lead star Hrithik Roshan. The light-eyed actor reportedly loved the story and it was announced in December 2020 that the duo will be working together again and in January 2021, it was confirmed that Deepika Padukone will be paired opposite Roshan. DP and Roshan play Indian Air Force officers with Anil Kapoor for company. There are aerial stunts, foot-thumping music, high-octane action sequences and, of course, the good-looking lead couple who have been paired together for the first time.

Prathinidhi 2 (Telugu), January 25

A prequel to the hugely successful political thriller Prathinidhi (2014), the forthcoming film stars Nara Rohit as the protagonist. Rohit has not had a release since 2018’s Veera Bhoga Vasantha Royalu which was a commercial failure. Directed by Murthy Devaguthapu, the prequel to Prathinidhi promises to be one with a lot of political intrigue and hard-hitting emotions. The tag line of the film reads ‘One man will stand again, against all odds’ and hints at the protagonist’s rebellion against the system.

Malaikottai Vaaliban (Malayalam), January 25

The two powerhouses of Indian cinema - filmmaker Lijo Jose Pellissery and actor Mohanlal - are coming together for the much-awaited Malaikottai Vaaliban, which reportedly features the Malayalam star as a wrestler in the pre-Independence era. Speaking about the movie written by PS Rafeeque, he has said, "This is beyond cinema. This is magic that Lijo Jose Pellissery has created." The film has been shot at locations across Rajasthan, Puducherry and Chennai. A collectible poster signed by the director and the lead actor was also released as an NFT.

Hadinelentu/Seventeeners (Kannada), January 26

Prithvi Konanur, the director who wants to hold a mirror to society, has been relentlessly filming subjects off the streets, the subjects of his award-winning films are almost always children/adolescents. In an Iranian cinema style, he lets the young protagonists, who are at peril, highlight the cracks in society. The lead in his Railway Children (2016) bagged the 64th National Film Award for Best Child Artist, then came Pinky Elli? (Where is Pinki?) in 2022, about child kidnapping. In the 2022 Busan International Film Festival's Kim Jiseok Award-nominated Hadinelentu, he takes the camera inside a classroom to show the dangers of the digital space for the young. A teenage sex video of a Dalit girl and a Brahmin boy gets leaked, what ensues is a gripping tale of caste and gender bias and the vagaries of the Indian legal system.