Release Date: January 25

You might be living under the rock to not know what is Pathaan's problem. Since the song "Besharam Rang" came out, the right wing outfits, including ministers, are calling for the film's boycott. While the song may be just an excuse, it is no secret that the real targets are Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone, both often being the protestal punching bags of the RW elements. We also have to remind you that SRK's recent BO success rate hasn't been that up to mark even before Pathaan brouhaha. Pathaan is definitely arriving with a huge buzz, though, but there is a fear that disruptors might create interruptions with the  screening of the movie in theatres, like they did with My Name is Khan and Dilwale. The success and the failure of the film will also affect the status quo of SRK's other two movies in 2023 - Jawan and Dunki.

Shehzada

Release Date: February 10

You might surprised with this entry, since Kartik Aaryan is riding the high wave of popularity right now since the blockbuster success of BB2. But I believe that Shehzada, co-starring Kriti Sanon, is a film that will make or break Kartik's superstardom. Reason? It is the remake of Allu Arjun's Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo. While making remakes is nothing new for Bollywood, the factor to be noted here is that Allu Arjun has made a huge impact on the Bollywood audience with Pushpa's success and people might have checked out Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo on Netflix. Let's remind you that after Pushpa's success, there were reports that makers of Shehzada had stopped the release of Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo's Hindi dub version in theatres. If Kartik pulls off this hit, then there is no denying that he is a bonafide bankable star.

Maidaan

Release Date: February 17

Ajay Devgn has been dropping teasers of his directorial debut, Bholaa, that is scheduled to release on March 30. He had recently shown excitement for Singham Again, that is still in pre-production. But what about Maidaan, that is scheduled to release just next month? The buzz is quite cool for the period sports film that has seen delays in release and also casting changes with Priyamani replacing Keerthy Suresh. Maidaan might be a good film, but we are curious why the makers haven't started on their promotions yet.

Selfiee

Release Date: February 24

Selfiee is a remake of the Malayalam hit Ayyappanum Koshiyum, and while it is a good film to remake with not many Hindi viewers having watched the original, there are other aspects that might trouble the film. The major one is that both its leading stars - Akshay Kumar and Emraan Hashmi - are going through a rough patch at the box office. So it remains to be seen if they can brush aside their BO bad luck and pull off a hit here, though Dharma Productions' backing won't hurt their chances. However, there are rumours that Selfiee might release directly on OTT>

Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan

Release Date: April 21

A couple of years back, it would have been unfathomable for a Salman Khan film to make to such a list like this. But the pandemic has changed a lot, notwithstanding how Salman's last release in theatres - Antim - fared at the box office. While we consider Tiger 3 a safe bet riding on the franchise success, can't say the same about Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, that has been getting a cold reception since its stills came out. Not even the title has gone down well, even with Bhai fans. The fact that the film had been pushed from 2022 to 2023 is also not seen as a sign of confidence.

Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani

Release Date: April 28

Karan Johar is always a bankable director even though his last film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil was met with mixed response. His Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani is considered as one of the biggest draws of 2023, though there are a couple of warning bells ringing here. For one, Ranveer Singh - the leading man - has had a below-average run at the box office in the last year, with his last film Cirkus turning a major disappointment and ending its director Rohit Shetty's spree of box office successes. Secondly, the romcom genre has also not been in favour at the box office. Can Karan Johar change the game here and bring back the audiences to the theatres to watch his film? Or will he also suffer under the audience's renewed obsession with hyper-masculine cinema? Only Time will tell helped by Alia Bhatt's lucky factor.

Adipurush

Release Date: June 16

In an alternative universe, we would have been waiting for Prabhas-Kriti Sanon-Saif Ali Khan's fantasy mythological film in the second week of January. But that is not to be, because Om Raut dropped that monstrosity of a trailer that earned no love from either fans or critics, who lambasted the poor VFX. The makers rescheduled the release date and the director promised to release the film with better VFX, though that means an increase in the budget. While June 16 is the new release date for the film, there are also murmurs that Adipurush might not even make it to this date. Adipurush: This Hobby VFX Artist's Twitter Breakdown of 'Bad' VFX in Prabhas-Kriti Sanon's Film Teaser is Going Viral!

Honourable Mentions

Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, 100% and Dunki

On the face of it, there might be nothing wrong with these films. But dig deeper and then you realise that the directors of these movies - Luv Ranjan, Sajid Khan and Rajkumar Hirani - are all accused under the #MeToo movement. But then Indian cinema hasn't bothered much about doing the right things, has it, and neither does the audience. Hence have added them in this 'Honourable Mentions' section.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 02, 2023 07:24 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).