Fans to decide Martin update, but is film releasing on October 11?

Dhruva Sarja’s film is delayed by 2 years already and the buzz is that it will get pushed further

Dhruva Sarja in a still from Martin

It was in August 2021 that Action Prince Dhruva Sarja’s 5thfilm, Martin went on floors. The film, based on a story by his uncle, Action King Arjun Sarja, reunited Dhruva with director AP Arjun, who launched him with Addhuri in 2012. A big-budget film produced by Uday K Mehta, Martin was meant to be a Dasara 2022 release, but delays in production and, subsequently post-production, meant that it was not only pushed ahead, but two years later, is still far from its date with audiences.

As of now, the team has announced that October 11 is when Martin will be in theatres, which Dhruva has been reinforcing time and again with social media posts. This week too, Dhruva put up an Instagram story about the release date, after fresh rumours sprang up about a possible postponement. Earlier today, the team announced that there would be poll running between July 20 and 21 about the promotional content to be released from Martin, and that the result will determine what comes first. This is something that Dhruva and Arjun have stated during earlier media briefings too.

No end in sight for Dhruva Sarja’s Martin?

While delays in VFX work was one of the most often quoted reasons for the film’s delay, multiple sources had hinted that it was also down to the fact that the theatrical and post-theatrical business deals had not been closed. Martin was always meant to be a big-budget film, but frequent delays have meant that it has overshot it by quite a bit. The team has not officially commented on a final figure, but it is said to be in the vicinity of Rs 100-200 crore, recovery of which is an uphill task, even with a pan-India release.

Speaking to OTTplay on condition of anonymity, a distributor dabbling with overseas releases, says that the team of Martin is looking at selling theatrical distribution rights for “outright sums”, which he describes saying, “the expectation are unbelievable; it’s not even a discussion point.” Recovery of such amounts is next to impossible in, say, Europe, while UK and USA fares better, he says. The price point quoted for Martin’s overseas distribution in one segment is said to be in double-figure crores, higher than what NTR Jr’s Devara has gone for.

Dhruva Sarja’s Martin gets a new release date; sets up clash with NTR Jr’s Devara

Amid these business troubles Martin is also now looking at a major box office fight with Rajinikanth's Vettaiyan, Suriya's Kanguva and Kannappa, featuring Vishnu Manchu and Prabhas. This is also why it is being said that a postponement could be possible.

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