Saif has been having a great run at the box office since the release of 'Hum Tum' [2004]. His subsequent films like 'Parineeta' [2004], 'Salaam Namaste' [2005], 'Being Cyrus' [2006]' and 'Omkara' [2006] have all been earners and all eyes are now set on him to see how 2007 goes.
Meanwhile Sanjay Dutt has a monster in the form of 'Lage Raho Munnabhai' behind him that has only helped his super-star status.
There are two films that would be vying for audience's attention in the very first quarter of 2007 - 'Nehlle Pe Dehlla' and 'Eklavya - The Royal Guard'. While the latter has been confirmed for a February 16 release, there is good probability of 'Nehlle Pe Dehlla' coming on February 9th.
Common factor amongst both these films is Saif co-starring with his senior partner Sanjay Dutt. While 'Nehlle Pe Dehlla' is a mad comic caper, 'Eklavya - The Royal Guard' belongs to drama genre.
'Nehlle Pe Dehlla' is a Ajay Chandok film who makes his directorial debut here. The film has been ready for quite some time but is eventually getting ready for release in 2007 beginning. On the other hand 'Eklavya - The Royal Guard' is a return to direction for Vidhu Vinod Chopra whose last film as a director was 'Mission Kashmir'.
With stakes being high for an eventual comeback film for Sanjay Dutt, it would be interesting to see if the releases happen as per schedule or 'Nehlle Pe Dehlla' gets pushed to a latter day.