Memes were already making merry when two films titled 'Jailer' were all set to release in Kerala. For movie enthusiasts, the contrast between the two films was too glaring to ignore. While one was the much-anticipated Thalaivar film, 'Jailer,' the other was Dhyan Sreenivasan’s Malayalam film, also titled 'Jailer.' We heard that audiences mistakenly booked tickets for the Malayalam film, thinking it was the Rajinikanth film.
In fact, both those booking tickets online and directly from the theatres were making the same error. They realized their mistake only when the film started playing. While the Tamil film was released on August 10th, the Malayalam version was released on the 18th. Initially, they had planned to release both films on the same date, but when it was announced that Rajinikanth’s 'Jailer' would release on the 10th, the makers of the Malayalam 'Jailer' decided to postpone their release.
It has been 10 days since the release of Nelson-directed 'Jailer,' and it continues to play to packed houses all over India. The film is being distributed in Kerala by Gokulam Gopalan under the banner of Sree Gokulam Movies. 'Jailer,' featuring Rajinikanth in top form along with Mohanlal and Shivraj Kumar in superb guest roles, is said to have revitalized the struggling theatres in Kerala. According to the theatre owners, it has been heartening to witness daily crowds thronging the theatres.
Meanwhile, the film by Dhyan Sreenivasan, directed by Zakeer, is also titled 'Jailer.' Director Zakeer Madathil alleged that since the Rajinikanth film was releasing in both Tamil and Malayalam, his film wasn't getting enough theatres. He even staged a protest in front of the Kochi Film Chamber Office. He mentioned that they only secured 40 theatres when it should have been 70. Faced with a shortage of expected theatres, they made the decision to postpone the release.
