SRK is currently filming Dilwale while Salman is busy promoting Bajrangi Bhaijaan
In the absence of an announcement from producers to the contrary, it appears that Eid 2016 will see an almighty collision at the box office with two Khans facing off - Shah Rukh's Raees vs Salman's
Sultan.
This tweet from trade analyst Taran Adarsh puts into words what everyone wants to know - will this mother of all battles really be allowed to take place?
Yash Raj Films, which is not known for backing down and making way for others as Ajay Devgn's
Son of Sardaar discovered firsthand in 2012, announced on Tuesday that it had booked Eid in July 2016 for Sultan, which stars Salman Khan as a wrestler.
As of now,
Raees is also meant to release on July 3. Producer Ritesh Sidhwani, who co-owns Excel Entertainment with Farhan Akhtar, interrupted his vacation in Tenerife to issue this cryptic tweet:
As Taran Adarsh asks, will the clash be averted? The last time that SRK and Salman faced-off at the box office was in 2006 when
Don and
Jaanemann released the same time. While a double Khan weekend would be a bonanza for fans, one Khan's release is likely to eat into the profits of the other. SRK is on excellent terms with Yash Raj Films, having starred in several of their movies. He's filming Fan for them and also shares a warm personal relationship with Yash Raj boss Aditya Chopra, who directed him in the seminal
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge 20 years ago.
SRK and Salman, who have only recently renewed their friendship after years of frosty relations, are two of Yash Raj's biggest stars. SRK has delivered hits such as Darr, Jab Tak Hai Jaan, Veer Zara and Dil Toh Pagal Hai, apart from DDLJ. Sultan is Salman's second film with Yash Raj after 2013 blockbuster
Ek Tha Tiger.
Traditionally - although this is a tradition established just a couple of years ago, the festival seasons have been equally distributed among the Khans with Eid reserved for Salman, Diwali for SRK and Christmas for Aamir. This year, however, Christmas has fallen to SRK's part in aid of Dilwale in the absence of an Aamir film while Salman retains Eid for
Bajrangi Bhaijaan. He also gets Diwali for
Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, since
Dilwale is the only SRK film releasing this year.
Neither Khan has commented on the collision course they appear to be running on. SRK is currently filming his third project
Dilwale in Bulgaria with Kajol, while Salman is gearing up for his film
Bajrangi Bhaijaan to hit screens on July 7.