All these films will directly go to Amazon Prime bypassing traditional theatrical release.
Across five Indian languages, apart from the above-mentioned Hindi releases, the direct-to-home menu features the Tamil legal drama "Ponmagal Vandhal" starring Jyotika, the Keerthy Suresh starrer "Penguin" (Tamil and Telugu), "Sufiyum Sujatayum" (Malayalam) starring Aditi Rao Hydari, "Law" (Kannada) starring Ragini Chandran and Siri Prahlad, and Danish Sait's next film "French Biryani" (Kannada).
The movies will premiere on the streaming platform over the next three months and will be available in 200 countries and territories worldwide.
Here’s the list of the movies and their release date on Amazon Prime Video:
Ponmagal Vandhal (Tamil), from 29th May
Gulabo Sitabo (Hindi), from 12th June
Penguin (Tamil and Telugu), from 19th June
Law (Kannada), from 26th June
French Biryani (Kannada), from 24th July
Shakuntala Devi (Hindi), release date to be announced
Sufiyum Sujatayum (Malayalam), release date to be announced
"We're taking this one step further, with seven of India's most-anticipated films premiering exclusively on Prime Video, bringing the cinematic experience to their doorstep," said Vijay Subramaniam, Director and Head, Content, Amazon Prime Video, India.
"Indian audiences have been eagerly awaiting the release of these seven films, and we are delighted that we will now be premiering these movies for our customers -- who can enjoy watching these from the safety and comfort of their homes and on a screen of their choice," said Gaurav Gandhi, Director and Country General Manager, Amazon Prime Video India.
Meanwhile, exhibitors are naturally not pleased with Amazon Prime's unprecedented move.
As part of a long press statement issued on Thursday evening, and without naming any film or production house in particular, the multiplex chain INOX stated: "The decision of production house to deviate from the globally prevalent content windowing practice is alarming and disconcerting. Cinemas and content creators have always been into mutually beneficial partnerships, where one's action provided fillip to another's revenues."