read 3 minutesMumbai3 February 2026 08:39 PM IST
Vijay’s Jana Nayakan, which was scheduled for a theatrical release during Pongal, has missed its deadline after a prolonged standoff. Producers and Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). Despite court cases related to the issue, there is still no clarity on when the film will hit the theatres. Adding to the uncertainty, the Censor Board has now refused to share any information regarding the certification process.
According to a report in The Hindu, when contacted to confirm reports doing the rounds in the film industry that production house KVN Productions has agreed to send the film to a review committee, CBFC Chennai Regional Officer D. Balamurali said that the law does not permit disclosure of any information related to the certification process.
The report quoted the official as saying, “I don’t have any information. Even if I have, I can’t reveal it at this stage. All our investigation process is confidential. Until the certificate is issued, we can’t reveal anything. The law prohibits sharing any such information. The public will know only when the film gets certified. At that time, we will communicate through our portal.”
Amid the ongoing uncertainty, trade analyst Ramesh Bala told India Today that its impact goes beyond producers. He said that Tamil Nadu theaters are suffering a loss of more than Rs 100 crore due to the halt in releases. Bala explained that Jana Nayakan was largely awaited, as it is Vijay’s last film before venturing into politics, and the Pongal release would have made it a “jackpot” for theater owners who were expecting bumper business.
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“Vijay’s Jan Nayakan and Sivakarthikeyan’s Parasakthi were supposed to clash on Pongal. However, the film’s release was postponed. Vijay’s film could have easily earned Rs 150-200 crore in Tamil Nadu alone. Parasakthi earned Rs 55 crore in Tamil Nadu.” He said, “Since there is no estimated revenue, the Tamil Nadu box office may suffer a loss of around Rs 100 crore due to the delay of Jana Nayagan.” Expressing these concerns, Chennai theater owner Ruban Mathivanan of GK Cinemas said that Jana Nayagan’s delay has disrupted the release schedule of Tamil films for the next few months.
With no clarity on the release date of the film after the Madras High Court recently referred the case to a single judge for further hearing, Vijay has also addressed the issue. In an off-camera conversation with NDTV’s Rahul Kanwal, the actor discussed the Jan Nayakan censor controversy. The journalist shared that he was impressed by Vijay’s calmness and clarity during the conversation, but also noted Thalapathy ‘feels bad’ for his producer Jan Nayakan as the film has not released. Vijay also said that he expected his films to be targeted because of his presence in politics.