Sankranthi 2023: All eyes on how Mythri Movie Makers deals with Waltair Veerayya, Veera Simha Reddy

We’ve had many situations in the past where directors and actors have had two releases on the same day/same season but Sankranthi 2023 presents a first-of-a-kind scenario. The same producer, Mythri Movie Makers, has the responsibility to ensure a smooth release of two biggies, Waltair Veerayya and Veera Simha Reddy, featuring stars like Balakrishna and Chiranjeevi. Interestingly, the female lead in both the films is the same as well - Shruti Haasan.

While Waltair Veerayya releases on January 13, Veera Simha Reddy arrives a day earlier. This can prove to be a complex situation for Mythri Movie Makers and they can’t leave anything to chance with the films, from the promotions to the theatre count, given the fan base the stars enjoy. To date, one must say they’ve done their job well and they’ve not given any reason for the fans to complain about. Both the films are registering impressive advance ticket sales in the US as well.

There’s no doubt that Veera Simha Reddy has the edge at the ticket window. Balakrishna has great momentum going for him after Akhanda and the success of his chat show on OTT, Unstoppable with NBK. S Thaman’s songs have worked very well - from the 90s styled Jai Balayya to the catchy duet Suguna Sundari and the foot-tapping dance number Maa Bava Manobhavalu. Both the looks of Balakrishna are in sync with his image and the promos present the star just the way his fans want to see him as.

Gopichand Malineni, the director, comes with a minimum-guarantee track record and Veera Simha Reddy is indeed the biggest test of his career. With Waltair Veerayya, though the songs were trolled initially, like most recent Devi Sri Prasad numbers, they’ve gone viral in no time. However, one gets the perception that Chiranjeevi is trying too hard to please his fans. Will the film work for a generation that hasn’t watched films like Rowdy Alludu, Gharana Mogudu or Mutha Mestri? Only time shall tell.

Waltair Veerayya and Veera Simha Reddy are mass entertainers at the end of the day. With the former, one can expect a good dose of humour and action and in the case of the latter, there shall be a mix of solid dialoguebaazi, violence and intense emotions. The main concern for Waltair Veerayya is its budget (nearing Rs 80-90 crore) and the performances of Chiranjeevi’s recent releases, Godfather and Acharya. If Mythri Movie Makers tastes success with both the films, it’ll indeed be a unique feat.