Salman Khan’s Maatrubhumi has cleared one government hurdle, but the film is still parked at the next gate. The makers have not received a date from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), keeping the planned November 13 release officially unconfirmed.
Certification has not moved yet
Maatrubhumi, earlier titled Battle Of Galwan, is based on the 2020 India-China conflict. After reported concerns about content and references to China, the project received government clearance recently. But a trade source told Bollywood Hungama that the makers applied for censor certification at the beginning of October, and the CBFC still has not scheduled the film’s screening.
An assurance that the screening would happen on Monday, October 26, did not materialise. Salman Khan has flown to Delhi a few times to request the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to facilitate the process.
Why November 13 makes sense
The release plan remains “very much on, subject to the CBFC issuing the certificate in time,” the source said. The date logic is simple: no other film has taken November 13, and it sits two weeks before Rajshri Productions’ Yeh Prem Mol Liya on November 27.
Salman does not want to clash with that film because Sooraj Barjatya, its director, is “like family” to him. A November 20 date was therefore ruled out.
December 4 was also considered, but Jio Studios distributes Maatrubhumi and is releasing Shraddha Kapoor-starrer Eetha on the same day. The studio said it could not open two films together, and Salman found that reasoning valid.
The state of play
- Early October: Makers apply for CBFC certification.
- October 26: An expected screening does not happen.
- November 13: Preferred release date, still not locked.
- November 27: Yeh Prem Mol Liya opens.
- December 4: Eetha opens; Jio Studios conflict ruled this out.
This is Bollywood release-calendar chess, not just bureaucracy. A star-led film choosing a clear two-week runway, and a distributor balancing two titles, shows how release dates are set by subtraction: the dates that work are often the ones left after clashes are eliminated.
For fans, the practical takeaway is to treat November 13 as a target, not a ticket-booking date, until the CBFC certificate is announced. A government clearance is a separate step from censor certification, and the latter is the one that puts a film on screens.
Source: bollywoodHungama.com