Team Brinda Vihaari, were all set with had posters up, channels running ads with the original date, songs were doing well online, and newspapers were set to print the October 16 release across Karnataka and other states. Yet, right before hitting screens, the team of the Ganesh-starrer directed by Srinivas Raju, and produced Samruddhi Manjunath, pulled back and postponed the release to November 20.

Moving a release date at the last minute usually means trouble or delayed post-production work, but producer-MLA Samruddhi V Manjunath gave a different reason. He made it clear that the team was not scared of big festival releases from other states, like Tamil biggie Jailer 2 or Telugu film Ranabaali. Instead, the reason was right at home in Karnataka.

A modest Kannada film, Premada Oorali, directed by Manoj Kumar, has held onto single screens and multiplexes across the state, pulling good crowds even in its third week.

"We had no problem going against big films from Chennai or Hyderabad," Manjunath said to reporters in Hubballi. "That didn't bother us. But Premada Oorali is our own Kannada film. Newcomers made it with everything they had, and people are actually going to theaters to watch it. Our industry has had very few hits this year. If we release our film on 1,300 screens right now, their theaters will get taken away. That is just not right."

Director Srinivasa Raju agreed with the decision, pointing out that theater owners were stuck trying to keep the running film while making space for new shows. "Our film is a musical love story and needs a proper release," Raju said. "Cutting short the run of another Kannada film that is doing well, just because we have a bigger star, did not feel right to us."

Lead actor Ganesh, who had been touring north Karnataka to promote the film and talk about his role as Madhava, supported the move completely.

"I was out traveling and meeting people every day, and we were fully ready for next week," Ganesh said. "When the producer spoke to me about this, I said yes right away. People will still come to see me in this new role in November. Giving an ongoing Kannada hit room to run comes first."

However, moving to November 20 brings its own complications. With few other Kannada titles having already locked that date on the calendar, it is now to watch closely to see if those films hold their ground or make way for Brinda Vihari.