With the second wave of Covid-19 resulting in the revival of active cases, a fear of yet another slump is looming over the film industry.

Over the past year, major releases featuring some of the biggest names of the industry were postponed indefinitely and some continue to be in limbo. Thankfully, the upcoming Holi weekend seems to usher in a hope of a revival with a few big releases, including Parineeti Chopra’s Saina – based on ace Badminton player Saina Nehwal – and Pagglait, an OTT release starring Sanya Malhotra.

Let’s take a look at the Holi 2021 releases and dwell on why they are a must-watch.

Saina While Roohi made the audience finally converge to theatres, Saina is expected to usher in a further revival of the box office. The film is a biography, based on the life of World Champion and Olympic medalist Saina Nehwal, who is referred to as the doyen of Indian badminton. The film chronicles Saina’s journey from being a gifted youngster to reach the zenith of badminton. The film stars Parineeti Chopra as Saina while the cast includes critically acclaimed actor Manav Kaul, Meghna Malik and Ankur Vikal. The film is being released in theatres on March 26. Saina has been directed by award-winning writer, director, producer and actor Amole Gupte, who has in the past helmed films like Taare Zameen Par and Stanley Ka Dabba. 

Pagglait

The film features Sanya Malhotra in the lead role, along with actors Ashutosh Rana, Raghubir Yadav and Shruti Sharma. The comedy-drama revolves around the life of Sandhya, essayed by Sanya, who gets widowed shortly after her marriage. She grapples with the inability to grieve and is constantly nagged by quirky relatives following a startling discovery about her late husband. He has left a large insurance sum in the name of his wife, following which her folks start discussing her future course of action. Perturbed by all, she embarks on a solo journey full of fun and humour. Pagglait, set for an OTT release on Netflix on March 26, has been written and directed by Umesh Bisht.

Chaipatti

This short film has drawn a lot of eyeballs with its short yet quirky trailer. This film is the directorial and acting debut of prominent radio storyteller Sudhanshu Rai. The over 10-min-long film also stars newcomer Shobhit Sujay, Abhishek Sonpaliya and Priyanka Sarkar. Chaipatti is a spooky yet hilarious experience of three friends who perform some ritual to invite a ghost, but end meeting a deadly fate. The film has been written by Sudhanshu Rai and Puneet Sharma and is set to initially release on YouTube on March 28. The YouTube release will be followed by the release on top OTT platforms.