Sivakarthikeyan reveals he was ‘shocked’ by Parasakthi’s Pongal clash with Jana Nayagan, called up Vijay’s manager: ‘What is this, bro?’

Sivakarthikeyan opens up on the clash of Parasakthi with Vijay's Jana Nayagan.

Anyone going up against ‘Thalapathy’ Vijay’s final film before his political plunge, H Vinoth’s action thriller Jana Nayagan, on Pongal should be worried for obvious reasons. That’s exactly why Sivakarthikeyan and the makers of his upcoming period political drama Parasakthi decided to push their movie from its initial release of Diwali 2025 to Pongal 2026 since Jana Nayagn was initially eyeing a Diwali 2025 release. However, the Vijay starrer was later rescheduled to release during Pongal 2026 as well.

“We continued working on our film, keeping Pongal in mind. However, suddenly, the Jana Nayagan team also pushed their release to Pongal. I felt shocked,” revealed Sivakarthikeyan at a pre-release event of Parasakthi. That prompted him to call up Jana Nayagan’s producer to ask him if they can move to another date in order to avoid a potentially fatal clash with Vijay’s swansong.

“However, he revealed that all the investors had already been informed that the film would be released for Pongal. Also, if postponed, it would release in the summer of 2026, which is when the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections are scheduled to take place,” recalled Sivakarthikeyan. His next attempt was to call up Vijay’s manager Jagadish and ask if he can do anything to avoid the clash.

“I asked him, ‘What is this, bro? Parasakthi and Jana Nayagan are releasing together, with this one even being promoted as Vijay sir’s last film. You may not have a problem at the box office, but I will. Could you please ask sir about it once?’ He went and asked Vijay sir and called me back five minutes later,” said Sivakarthikeyan.

Vijay informed Sivakarthikeyan through his manager that since the release window is that of a major festival like Pongal, there’s enough scope for both Jana Nayagan and Parasakthi to perform well at the box office. He also conveyed his best wishes for Sivakarthikeyan’s film. “So, in conclusion, what I want to say is this: Everyone, please go watch and enjoy Jana Nayagan on January 9 and celebrate it. We are talking about a man who has entertained us for 33 years. Then, on January 10, come and watch Parasakthi and celebrate that too,” he added.

Even Aakash Baskaran of Dawn Pictures, producer of Parasakthi, revealed that the clash is an “unnecessary controversy” since it’s common for multiple big releases to come out around the same time during Pongal. “We had to move the release date as many theatre owners, exhibitors and distributors suggested that we release it with a one-day or two-day gap between major releases to utilise the 10-day festive holiday to the fullest. They said that if we release it prior, they would be able to manage showtimes in a better way and ensure that both the films get equal space,” he told India Today.