Actor Krishna’s debut directorial Love Mocktail, will be among the first films to make it to theatres post the lockdown. With the government issuing guidelines for the reopening of cinema halls from October 15, producer and distributor Manjunath Gowda has taken the initiative to reconnect with the audience. He has decided to release Love Mocktail in theatres on October 16.

The romantic drama, jointly produced by Krishna and Milana Nagaraj, also has Amrutha Iyengar, Rachana Inder, Abhilash, and Kushi Achar. “Love Mocktail, which was having a good run in theatres before the lockdown, did well on streaming platforms and became one of the most-viewed films on OTT. So, we thought it would be one of the best films to reconnect with the audience in theatres,” says Manjunath Gowda, adding that there’s been a demand for re-releases, and this is being decided according to audience choices.

“I distributed Love Mocktail when it was released back in January. This time, it is an initiative taken by me, and more than anything it is like testing waters to gauge the response from cine-goers post the lockdown,” he says.

Krishna, who is looking forward to watching Love Mocktail along with the audience, doesn’t consider this a re-release. “My film was paused in theatres owing to the pandemic, and the film is back to continue its run on the big screen. I want people who watched Love Mocktail on OTT to reconnect with it in theatres again,” says the actor-director.

Krishna was hoping to release Love Mocktail 2, but could not complete the project in time. “I will be ready with the sequel by December,” he says.