A directive from the Kerala government announced that all theatres in the state will remain closed till March 31 due to the coronavirus outbreak. Several upcoming Malayalam movies slated for Vishu (April 14) release are likely to get affected due to this.

We had reported yesterday that the makers of Tovino Thomas' Kilometres and Kilometres, which was initially set to be released on Thursday, have decided to postpone the release until further notice.

Meanwhile, the question on everyone's mind right now is if Priyadarshan's Marakkar, starring Mohanlal, will be postponed as well. There has been no update from the film's producers so far. The big-budget epic, made at a cost of about Rs 100 crore, is Malayalam's most expensive production till date and is scheduled to be released in around 5000 screens around the world on March 26.

In addition to Marakkar, One (starring Mammootty), Malik (starring Fahadh Faasil), and Keshu E Veedinte Nadhan (starring Dileep) are some of the other films that have been lined up for release in the coming weeks. Of these, Malik is a big-budget film.

As of now, a total of 12 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Kerala.