Shivarajkumar’s much-awaited prequel to Mufti, the origin story of his character Bhairathi Ranagal, named after the protagonist, was to be the big Independence Day release in Kannada cinema. But then last-minute delays in production forced the team to postpone it, with no date being announced. A September release it would be, is what new posters and other promotional material carried, all accompanied by the hashtag #RanagalinSeptember.

Accordingly, it was widely thought that Bhairathi Ranagal would set up a box office clash with NTR Jr’s Devara, with a September 26 or 27 date expected to be announced. However, the latest buzz is that the Shivarajkumar-led film will skip September and become a Dasara release. The film is still in post-production and sources suggest that that team may not be able to meet a September deadline.

As such, October 4 is being heard as the next possible release date. There is also the likelihood of it moving one more week ahead and occupying the Martin release date of October 11, what with rumours galore that the Dhruva Sarja-led thriller will be postponed yet again.

Despite assertions from the team of Martin that they will stick to their October 11 plan, VFX work is still on, with August end the deadline given to that vendor. Negotiations are still on for Martin’s outside Karnataka distribution rights, with only the AP/Telangana deal sealed as of now, so sources suggest that a further postponement is likely. Should Martin get pushed ahead, Bhairathi Ranagal will be the Dasara release.

Bhairathi Ranagal pairs Shivarajkumar with Rukmini Vasanth, while Rahul Bose is the main antagonist. The film also stars Gopalkrishna Deshpande, Madhu Guruswamy, Vasishta N Simha, Shabeer Kallarakkal, among others, and has music by Ravi Basrur. The film was initially said to be a prequel and sequel, detailing how Ranagal came to be a crime boss, who is also a saviour for the people of his village, as well as life after his incarceration at the end of Mufti.

The promotional material of the film, though, dubs it as a prequel only. Bhairathi Ranagal is Shivarajkumar’s second home production after Vedha.

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